QUEZON CITY REINFORCES COMMITMENT TO PUBLIC HEALTH THROUGH STRENGTHENED TOBACCO CONTROL ORDINANCE
Quezon City, Philippines – The Quezon City Government reaffirmed its commitment to protecting public health as it held a public consultation on the proposed comprehensive smoke-free and vape-free ordinance on Wednesday, December 17, held at the Quezon City Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, & Exhibitions Center, Quezon City.
Quezon City has implemented smoke-free and vape-free policies through various ordinances. To strengthen tobacco control efforts, the City proposes to harmonize existing regulations into a single comprehensive policy. This aims to improve enforcement and address gaps to better protect QCitizens, especially the youth, from the harmful effects of secondhand exposure to smoking and vaping.
“Marami po ang may sakit, cancer, at hypertension. Nakita ba ang koneksyon [nito] sa smoking and chronic alcoholism? Iyan po ang mga dapat sagutin at binibigyang-tugon ng ating Quezon City Government (Many [QCitizens] are getting diseases, cancer, and hypertension. Have we looked at the connection to smoking and chronic alcoholism? These are the questions the Quezon City government is trying to answer and address),” Dr. Maria Lourdes Eleria, Quezon City Assistant City Health Officer, said during the public consultation. “Let Quezon City be a benchmark in reducing–if not eradicating–smoking, vaping, and alcoholism.”
The proposed ordinance strengthens existing national laws by adopting local measures to address emerging tobacco and nicotine products, clarifying smoke-free public spaces, strengthening penalties, and improving coordination among city offices and departments.
“Dapat may matibay na ordinansa sa pagbabawal ng vape kasi walang regulasyon [na nagsasabi] na ito ay nakakatulong sa pagbawas sa paninigarilyo (There should be a strong ordinance banning vapes because there’s no regulation that shows they actually help reduce smoking),” said Melchor Tuddao, a QCitizen and executive officer of Barangay Roxas Public and Security Office.
This timely measure to protect the health of QCitizens comes during an unchecked epidemic of non-communicable diseases in the Philippines. The Philippine Cancer Society has estimated that over 112,000 Filipinos die of tobacco-related diseases each year. Tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke remain major contributors to preventable non-communicable diseases, including heart disease, stroke, and cancer.
Strengthening local tobacco control measures is seen as a critical step toward reducing these health risks and high healthcare costs in Quezon City and addressing preventable mortality due to non-communicable diseases. As of 2020, Quezon City recorded approximately 965,000 residents under the age of 18 and over 234,000 over the age of 60. This means that over a million QCitizens will be protected by restrictions on tobacco use and bans on tobacco advertising, promotion, and sales.
“We’d like to thank the Quezon City Government for proposing this ordinance because it is extremely beneficial and important, especially for us youth who are exposed to the harms of smoking and vaping,” said Mina Rompone, Peace-Building, Security, and Health Chair of the Federation of Payatas Youth Leaders. “This ordinance will foster a healthy environment in our barangays and communities.”
Public interest law group ImagineLaw expressed support for the Quezon City Government’s tobacco control efforts and reiterated its commitment to support the ordinance as it advances toward enactment and effective implementation.
“We will continue to support Quezon City’s efforts to address policy enforcement gaps that the tobacco and vaping industry continue to exploit,” said Atty. Ma. Anna Margarita Bueno, project manager at ImagineLaw. “Panahon na para pangalagaan ang kalusugan ng mamamayan laban sa mapanlinlang na industriya (It’s time to take a firm stand and protect public health from the tobacco industry’s lies and deception),” Atty. Bueno added. #
