A 47-year-old man became the first person to be brought in by Corella police for smoking in public after a nationwide ban on cigarette smoking was enforced in July.

The man identified as Casimiro Charcos, a resident of Cortes, was spotted smoking at a market in Corella at around 3 p.m. on Sunday, said PO1 Christopher Ramirez.

Charcos who was also allegedly drunk was then invited to the Corella Police Station for a short seminar.

However, no fine was imposed on Charcos as police only subjected him to a brief lecture on the smoking ban as part of the town’s information drive on the prohibition.

According to Ramirez, they are still awaiting orders from the local government unit of Corella as to when they will start meting out penalties against violators of the executive order.

The municipality of Corella is seeking to become a smoke-free town, said Ramirez. (A. Doydora)