By LITO RULONA Correspondent COUNCILOR Reuben Daba is pushing for a new city ordinance in an effort to impose stricter regulations on smoking in the city, including vaping. While the city already has an ordinance that bans smoking in public places and establishments, Daba said there was a need to go stricter on the use, sale, distribution and advertisement of cigarettes and other tobacco products in the city with the objective of turning Cagayan de Oro into a smoke-free city. He said if the proposal is approved, the Roads and Traffic Administration, police and barangay officials would be tasked to enforce the stricter regulations. If approved, Daba said he wants the rules implemented and enforced the way it’s being done in Davao City. “When I went to Davao, their ordinance is being fully implemented. Naa gyu’y ngipon kumpara sa atong mga ordinansa diri nga taphaw lamang. Dili nato mapa-undang ang sigarilyo apan atong maegulate,” he said. Daba said he also wants establishments to provide designated areas for customers who wish to smoke. The existing anti-smoking  ordinance, authored by the then councilor Antonio Soriano in the ’90s, provides this already. Daba, a dentist by profession, also made a bold scientific claim against vaping or the use of e-cigarettes that are seen by many as a safe alternative to cigarette smoking. Without showing scientific data or citing a medical basis, Daba claimed that the effects of vapes or e-cigarettes were similar to cigarettes. “Bisan gani ang e-cigarette duna gihapoy effects. Ang normal nga sigarilyo parehora og effect sa electronics cigarette. Kung unsa ang kadaut sa iyang abaysa normal nga sigarilyo mao gihapon sa e-cigarette,” Daba said. Daba said the proposed ordinance is in line with the Philippine Clean Air Act of 1991 (RA 8749) that declares the right of every citizen to breathe clean air, prohibits smoking inside enclosed public places, including public vehicles and other means of transport, and directs local government units to implement the provision. He also cited the Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003 (RA 9211) that prohibits smoking in certain public places whether enclosed or outdoors, prohibits the purchase and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products from and to minors and in certain places frequented by minors, and that imposes bans and restrictions on advertising. In another related development, Councilor Ian Mark Nacaya proposed the enactment of a Health Code for the city. Nacaya told the city council’s committee on health and sanitation and health insurance on Wednesday: “Why not come up with a draft of a Health Code for Cagayan de Oro which covers everything about advocacy promotion of good health and all others?” Nacaya said his proposed health code would cover efforts to make the city smoking-free, and the anti-dengue campaign, among others. The city council’s health committee a technical working group to look into Nacaya’s proposal. The group is chaired by Dr. Rachel Dilla.