Former House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano on Thursday reiterated the importance of junking the Vaporized Nicotine Products Regulation Act or Vape Bill.
“Ang responsibilidad naman talaga ng gobyerno is to do good and prevent evil. Basta may possibility ng addiction, mapa-alak man yan, sugal yan o sigarilyo, dapat nire-regulate yan ng gobyerno,” Cayetano said in a media interview on February 3, 2022.
(Government’s responsibility is to do good and prevent evil. As long as there’s a possibility of addiction, whether that’s alcohol, gambling or tobacco, it should be regulated by the government.)
Cayetano questioned the assertion that vape and e-cigarettes can wean smokers away from cigarettes. “Ang problema, kung ayun lang ang argument, bakit y’ung edad na 21, ibinaba nila sa 18?” he said.
“So ibig sabihin, tina-target ng mga kumpanyang na gusto tayong maadik sa sigarilyo at nicotine yung mga bata. New wave o generation ito ng mga nicotine users,” he added
(The problem with that argument is, why lower the age from 21 to 18? So that must mean, these companies want to get young people addicted to cigarettes and nicotine products. This is a new wave or generation of nicotine users.)
Lowering the minimum age restriction for the sale of vape products to 18 from 21, according to Cayetano, puts nicotine use within reach of the age range that is most susceptible to its negative developmental effects. He added that studies on the effects of nicotine exposure to teens and young adults indicate possible links to problems in brain development.
Cayetano also said the government should not be promoting vape and e-cigarettes because the costs for rehabilitation and recovery are high. The former Speaker pointed out that at least 59 medical associations in the country have appealed to President Duterte to thumb down the proposed law.
He also slammed a provision in the bill that seeks to transfer the regulation of vaporized nicotine products from the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). Cayetano warned that if the regulatory functions are moved to the DTI, the Philippines will become a laughing stock as other nations strengthen their regulations through their respective food and drugs administrations.
“Y’un nga lang nilalagay sa ilong na COVID antigen tests e pinapa-approve pa sa FDA, tapos sisinghot tayo ng mga vape na ang mag-a-approve ay ang DTI,” Cayetano said. “Sa America, more than 10,000 ang pinagbawal na vape flavors, so dapat FDA ang mag-regulate niyan,” he added.
(We have to get COVID antigen tests approved by the FDA, only to let our people huff on vape that’s approved by the DTI. In America, more than 10,000 vape flavors are banned, so the FDA should regulate those.)
The former House Speaker has come out strongly against the Vape Bill in the last few weeks, particularly as the legislation hurdled the bicameral conference committee near the end of January 2022.
Cayetano has called for President Rodrigo Duterte to veto the bill, saying it is “dangerous” to the Filipino people. ####