14 vape shops in Manila padlocked

Credit to Author: Tempo Desk| Date: Thu, 28 Nov 2019 05:04:33 +0000

(Photo by Ali Vicoy)

At least 14 vape shops in Manila were ordered closed for operating without business permits, the Manila Police District (MPD) bared Thursday.

According to Lt. Col. Carlo Magno Manuel, chief of the MPD Public Information Office, out of 40 stores they have inspected in the nation’s capital, 14 of them were padlocked.

At least 26 vape shops were also given warnings by MPD, Manuel said.

Six vape shops were closed by Raxabago Police Station, four in Santa Mesa, two in Moriones, one each in Binondo and Pandacan.

Aside from the closure of the vape shops, 17 e-cigarette smokers were arrested by police.

Manila Police District chief Bernabe Balba said those arrested were only instructed to go to the station to record their names in the police blotter, confiscate their devices, then set them free.

“For record purposes lang, they will go to the station, write their names and we will release them,” Balba said.

“Pero ngayon umuunti na lang ang nahuhuli natin siguro dahil na rin sa order,” he added.

Manuel said they started conducting inspections on Nov. 20 to monitor the enforcement of the ban on the importation and use of vapes.

Manila has banned smoking in public places since 2017 through City Ordinance No. 8521, or also known as the Smoke-Free Ordinance.

The ordinance prohibits selling, advertising and promoting cigarettes and ENDS within 100 meters from the perimeter of any school, public playground, any office of the Department of Health (DoH) and attached agencies, hospitals and health facilities.

The ordinance also prohibits the mere possession of any tobacco products, including VAPE devices, “whether the smoke is being actively inhaled or exhaled.”

For those who cannot control the unhealthy habit, the ordinance mandates the establishment of smoking areas outside each city government building provided it is not less than 10 meters away from where people pass or congregate and with visible “Smoking Area” and “Minors Not Allowed” signage complete with graphic he
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