Gomez steps up campaign for “smoking-free” Ormoc

ORMOC CITY, Philippines —  Mayor Richard Gomez, together with City Health Office personnel and the Ormoc City Police Office (OCPO), has stepped up his drive to make Ormoc a "Smoking-Free City."

On May 17, the mayor personally led the "Oplan Baklas" or the removal of cigarette advertising posters in stores within 100-meter distance from schools and barangay halls.

Gomez told The Freeman he is just implementing a provision of Republic Act 9211 which says that cigarette advertising should not be allowed in areas and stores within 100 meters from school zones and where minors converge. The prohibition also includes government buildings like barangay halls.

"We did Operation Baklas to implement RA 9211," he said, adding that they also took down posters and billboards fronting barangay halls.

"We are a local government unit," said Gomez, adding that "the mayor is supposed to implement the law." Besides Operation Baklas, the city government through the City Health Office also carried out a city-wide information campaign on the public health risks of smoking.

Gomez emphasized though that "people are not being stopped from smoking. They can smoke in their homes and designated smoking areas." However, "as an LGU, we are the implementer of existing laws and RA 9211 is one of them."

Ormoc City, under the Gomez administration, is a nominee for the regional Red Orchid Award under LGU category. 

The mayor said he wants Ormoc to be a "Smoking-Free City," because that is the law and not because he is eyeing for the Red Orchid Award. He said that, early on in his term, he already implemented the country's Anti-Smoking Law.

"Well, if we were nominated, that is good because the people can probably see what we have been doing. With all the requirements, I think kuha naman natin - we apprehend people if may nag-smoke sa public area, then we started the baklas," he said.

Ormoc City has its own anti-smoking ordinance passed in the early 90s, but it was never implemented because a good number of the authors were heavy smokers themselves.