LGUs form Anti-Smoking Task Forces
SMOKING BAN ENFORCEMENT
LOCAL Government Units (LGUs) in Pangasinan have been advised to form their own anti-smoking task forces to enforce Executive Order No. 26 signed by President Rodrigo Duterte seeking to provide smoke-free environment in both public and private places.
The call was made by Francisco de Vera Jr., a representative of the Department of Health (DOH) regional officer whose agency has been tasked to conduct a comprehensive information program on the executive order.
He told the KBP Forum last week that the task force should be comprised of members of the PNP and representatives of LGUs and Department of Education.
He said public places include roads, churches, parks, markets and others where smokers are liable to be arrested each time.
The No Smoking ban, he said, extends up to buses, jeeps and boats.
De Vera said all hotels should also enforce the no-smoking ban in their establishments that extends up to the hotel rooms and the owners of the hotel are accountable even if room occupants do not comply.
For the convenience of their guests, hotels are required to designate smoking areas (DSAs) which must not be 10 meters away from their entrance and exit doors.
Penalties for persons caught smoking in public are: Not less than P500 but not more than P1,000 for the first offense; not less than P1,000 but not more than P5,000 for the second offense; and not less than P5,000 but not more than P10,000 for the third offense.
Higher penalties will be imposed upon owners of establishments and the companies that sell cigarettes to minors, De Vera said.
The penalties for selling cigarettes to minors are: Not less than P100,000 or imprisonment of not more than one year for the first offense; and not less than P200,000 or imprisonment of two years or both upon the discretion of the court for the second offense.
At the same time, he urged the public to report the driver of a jeepney or bus who smoked inside their units to the Land Transportation Office and the Land Transportation and Regulatory Board by reporting the plate number of the vehicles or by taking photos of the offender. (Leonardo Micua)
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