The Tagbilaran City Police Station started to impose fines against violators of the smoking ban which was implemented across the city Monday.
According to Supt. Patricio Degay, chief of the Tagbilaran police, authorities enforced the smoking ban based on Executive Order (EO) 26 which was issued by President Duterte in May, 2017.
The EO stipulates that smoking is prohibited in public spaces such as schools, recreational facilities, elevators, stairwells, areas with fire hazards, hospitals, clinics and food preparation areas.
Degay said that on the first day of the EO’s enforcement on Monday, authorities caught a man smoking right across the Island City Mall in Barangay Dao.
Police accosted the violator and issued a citation ticket against him.
The violator who Degay did not identify was fined P500 for smoking in public.
In December, the Tagbilaran City Council approved the “Comprehensive Smoke-Free Ordinance of the City Government of Tagbilaran.”
It was passed with minor revisions to its original version as submitted by Councilor Eliezer Borja, the Sangguniang Panlungsod’s (SP) committee on health chair.
However, the city SP’s version of the smoking ban has not yet been implemented. (AD)