QUEZON City, Philippines (Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte admitted that although he already has a draft of the Executive Order banning smoking inside government agencies and in public places nationwide, he is still studying it further and has not yet signed the order.
Duterte said that he is being careful on signing the executive order and admitted that he is still undecided on some provisions.
“I’m measuring the resistance, whether I can compromise, for example, [on] smoking areas inside building,” he said.
The draft EO was made by Health Secretary Pauline Ubial.
“The executive order will actually mandate all the agencies of government, including the local government to implement this 100% smoking ban in all public places. It’s not just Metro Manila,” she said.
The President said that he wants to get confirmation from the medical sector in order to assure the public that banning smoking will benefit the public, before he signs the EO.
“Davao is different from the rest of Philippines. So I have to be very careful in trying to navigate the way how I can present it to the public. For example, I’d need the pronouncements, not really the opinion, the pronouncements of our medical sector,” he said.
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