Category: Safety EN

September 26 is the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, a day for all nations to confront a sobering truth: nuclear weapons are ticking time bombs in our midst, and there are strong reasons to ban them. Nuclear weapons are not just tools of war; they are instruments of annihilation. Designed for mass death, they indiscriminately kill civilians, destroy ecosystems, and...

The Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) urges the Ministry of Housing and Local Government and local authorities to review and regulate the rapid increase in electronic advertising billboards along major roads. These digital billboards, with their highly conspicuous and rapidly changing displays, pose a serious risk of distracting drivers and compromising road safety. Our recent survey in...

A Quick Killer and Destroyer of Worlds There is a tool that can unmake us. It begins with a flash so bright that, through closed eyes and cupped hands, you could see the bones of the people huddled around you. Within minutes, it evaporates major cities and sends every one of the 12,000 or so airborne passenger aircraft tumbling from the sky. Within days, it sparks anarchy as governments and...

Cookware, paint, toys. Many everyday items may contain lead, a toxic heavy metal responsible for over 1.5 million deaths each year. It poses a particular threat to children and harms biodiversity. It is a cumulative toxicant particularly hazardous to young children and pregnant women. No safe level of lead exposure has been established. Once taken into the body, lead can cause permanent damage to...

Multiple studies over the past decade have confirmed the claim that smartphones can harbour more bacteria than a toilet seat – in some cases 10 to 20 times more. Research from organisations like the University of Arizona and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has found that smartphone surfaces are warm and frequently touched, making them ideal breeding grounds for bacteria....

In Germany, when traffic comes to a complete stop, drivers are required to shift to the edges of their lanes to create a clear central path, known as an emergency corridor or Rettungsgasse, for emergency vehicles. It's actually the law to form an emergency lane, so ambulances police, and fire services can reach their destinations quickly during traffic jams. The rule applies on all roads with...

The Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) is deeply saddened by the recent tragic accident that occurred on the East-West Highway near Tasik Banding, Gerik. An express bus, carrying students from the University Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI), collided with a Perodua Alza MPV, resulting in the loss of 15 young lives. CAP extends its heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims during...

The Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) reiterates our call to impose a ban on heavy vehicles during peak hours.  The government has gazetted a ban on lorries on highways to and from Kuala Lumpur during peak hours, starting from February 19, 2025. This rule is to smoothen traffic flow in the Klang Valley by removing slow-moving heavy vehicles during peak hours. On 20th February 2025,...

The Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) calls for the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the 1 April gas pipeline fire in Putra Heights and to ensure that such a disaster does not recur. Questions have arisen on what went wrong and why the automated safety mechanism for the gas pipeline failed to trigger and how come the gas pipeline was so close to residential...