Executive Order on national firecracker ban was revised.
Concerned national government agencies decided to revise the Executive Order which will implement the nationwide firecracker ban in the Philippines.
This was stressed by the Malacañang Palace on Friday after the Cabinet meeting on Thursday.
Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Secretary Martin Andanar said concerned agencies would look into the proposed national firecracker ban executive order to ease the possible loss of jobs and ensure that celebrations remain festive.
“A revised EO on the firecracker ban will be submitted. The concerned agencies will look into the proposal to regulate pyrotechnics to mitigate the possible loss of jobs and at the same time enable traditional celebration of festivities,” Andanar said in a text message to reporters.
He admitted that the EO on the proposed national firecracker ban was discussed during the eighth Cabinet meeting in Malacañang on Thursday.
In October, President Rodrigo Duterte said he would first have to consult members of his Cabinet before deciding on his plan to imposed a nationwide ban on firecrackers starting from his term.
During a media briefing before flying to Brunei for a state visit, Duterte said the economic and social implications of such a ban should first be considered before arriving at a decision.
“I will have a Cabinet meeting… I would need the Cabinet to decide. It will be a Cabinet decision,” Duterte said.
During his presidential campaign, Duterte had also said he would ban firecrackers throughout the Philippines to keep Christmas and New Year’s Eve celebrations safe for all Filipinos, just like in Davao City.
Davao City, where Duterte served as mayor for 23 years, has an executive order signed in 2001 and an ordinance in 2002 that ban firecrackers in the city.
Except for one recorded in 2009, Duterte’s hometown boasts of a zero firecracker casualty since the ban was implemented.
The Philippine National Police also wants stiffer penalties to those who will violate the firecracker law but the Philippine Fireworks Association and Philippine Pyrotechnics Manufacturers and Dealers Association Incorporated told the Duterte administration that “millions” of people rely on the industry.