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Friday, December 1, 2017
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SAN JOSE, Antique – Residents of Pandan were urged to support the increase in the tax on tobacco to deter people, especially the youth, from smoking.
The group Vital Strategies and the Department of Health staged the first leg of the Smoke-Free Philippines Caravan in the town recently.
Pandan was chosen as pilot area for having received recently the Red Orchid Award from the Health department, said Vital Strategies communication manager Carlos P. Garcia.
The award is given to local governments with successful programs geared toward 100-percent tobacco-free communities.
Garcia said the caravan will rally support for higher tobacco taxes and highlight its positive impact on public health and the economy.
More than 17 million adult Filipinos smoke cigarettes, Vital Strategies said in a press release, citing the 2015 Global Adult Tobacco Survey.
It was estimated that more than 71,850 Filipinos every year – or eight people every hour – die of tobacco-related diseases, read the press release.
Moreover, an estimated 3,000 nonsmoking adult Filipinos die every year of lung cancer as a result of inhaling secondhand smoke, it further read.
The caravan featured booths for various games that reflect the fight against smoking.
In the game named “Asintahin,” a player was given 10 darts to pop balloons that symbolize smoke-related diseases, while in “Uposin,” the player must put a hole on symbolic cigarette butts using a water gun.
After Pandan, the caravan will head to Baguio City; Balanga, Bataan; Quezon City; San Pedro, Laguna; Buruanga, Ibajay and Kalibo, Aklan; Roxas City, Capiz; Iloilo City; Oroquieta City; and General Santos City, before ending in Davao City. (PIA/PN)
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