ILOILO CITY: The Department of Health (DOH) has embarked on a five-year national tobacco control strategies to arrest and reduce smoking and second-hand smoke from cigarettes.

Dr. Ivanhoe Escartin, director of the National Tobacco Control Coordinating Office, National Center for Health Promotion of DOH, said that the 2011-2016 national program will focus on compliant laws and policies aim to the reduction of smokers and second-hand smokes.

Escartin was in Iloilo City on Thursday of November 15, to lead in the dissemination forum by curbing the tobacco epidemic through implementation of consolidated tobacco control efforts in the regions and the whole country.

Among the strategies are the strategy to increase prices of cigarettes through the sin tax, graphic health warning on the dangers pose by smoking, reduction of second-hand smoke in designated smoking areas, and the expanded fight against tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship and a cohesive program on smoking cessation with clinics not only in health centers and health stations but also in schools, work places and shopping malls.

Escartin said that 28.3 percent of the adult population or roughly 17 million Filipinos are smokers and the figure needs to be reduced drastically.

Escartin said that DOH is targeting a modest 50 to 60 percent of total local government units in the country by 2016 as Red Orchid awardees showing local government units concerns against smoking.

On the other hand, Executive Director Iñigo Garingalao of Iloilo City’s anti-smoking task force, reported that the city is a Red Orchid Awardee given by the health department.

However, Garingalao added that the city does not have yet an ordinance against outdoor advertising cigarette billboards. With this discrepancy, the task force is working closely with coordinating government agencies to get down cigarette billboards in five city barangays.