BALANGA CITY – Three city mayors in the country considered as “smoke-free champions” on Thursday expressed elation over their achievement, saying a big majority of their constituents support their program of attaining a 100 percent smoke-free environment.
Mayors Maloney Samaco of Maasin City, Leyte; Jose Enrique Garcia III of Balanga City, Bataan and Benthan dela Cruz of Amlan City, Negros Occidental are last termers but vowed to continue with their advocacy.
All three city chief executives considered educating people and good information as major key in the success of their campaign. “People have to support the program to succeed,” they said. The three cities are among the few cities listed in the Hall of Fame of the Department of Health after receiving Red Orchid Awards for three consecutive years in the anti-smoking campaign.
Samaco said selling of cigarettes in 70 barangays of Maasin is banned. He said that he no longer issues Mayor’s Permit to stores and wholesalers selling cigarettes after they got the Red Orchid Award. “Why give a permit for selling product that kills, gives sickness. I want my people to stay healthy,” Samaco said.
Maasin has a population of 88,000. Garcia foresees not only Bataan but the Philippines as smoke-free by 2025 beginning with the cities. He announced that in Tuesday’s executive meeting of the League of Cities of the Philippines, Red Orchid Hall of Famers urged members to pass smoke-free ordinance to be presented to the General Assembly in October this year.
“We are happy to host a workshop for smokefree champions in Southeast Asia and partners,” Garcia told delegates and participants in the Second Regional Workshop of the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance. Dela Cruz said Amlan City and Negros Occidental are already smoke-free but not tobacco- free.
“We use tobacco as pesticides for our organic farming,” the mayor said. He said that public places in their area are smoke-free and extending even in private residences.
