MANILA – Biñan City Rep. Marlyn Alonte believes that the measure she filed to regulate vaping will provide teeth to the order of President Rodrigo Duterte to ban the use of vaping products in public.
“Ito ay parang magsisilbing ngipin doon sa gustong ipatupad din ng ating mahal na Pangulo, ang House 5561 which is the Tobacco and Vaping Regulation Act para wala nang mag-question na ‘yung dating executive order, hindi kasali doon ang vaping,” Alonte said in a Dobol B sa News TV interview on Sunday.
Her proposal, House Bill 5561, seeks to amend to the Tobacco Regulation Act, she said.
Duterte has earlier issued Executive Order 26 which prohibits cigarette use in public places, but it does not make mention of vaping.
But Alonte explained vaping was not a fad yet at the time the executive order was issued.
“Ngayon, naging open, ini-import ‘yan, dumarating dito sa atin, ‘yung iba bumibili abroad kasi akala nila ‘yung alternative sa mga gustong mag-quit na ng smoking. Akala nila hindi harmful,” she said.
Alonte added a law regulating vaping is more powerful than an executive order, but the President can still make an issuance pending the passage of a national policy.
“Yun naman ang ating thrust sa bill na ito. Hindi naman totally tatanggalin, hindi totally iba-ban. Pero iba-ban natin ang pag-import at ipagbabawal natin ang vaping in public,” she said.
Alonte also urged the Department of Health and Food and Drug Administration to conduct information dissemination campaigns on the dangers of using vaping products, which she said is popular among teenagers supposedly because they do not contain nicotine. (GMA News/PN)
