The chairman of the House of Representatives’ committee on health has filed a bill prohibiting the selling, serving, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages in all streets, pathways, plazas, alleys, sidewalks, parks, and parking areas.
Quezon Rep. Angelina Tan’s House Bill 3047 prohibits the consumption of alcohol in all establishments between 12 to eight o’ clock in the morning.
Restaurants, clubs, hotels, retail stores, supermarkets, fastfood chains, canteens, cafés, bar and cocktail lounges and other places with common business areas located within Metropolitan Manila, highly urbanized areas, and Special Economic Zones or Ecozones, however, may be allowed to sell or serve alcohol until two in the morning, Tan, the panel’s chairman, said.
“This measure is a proactive response to the growing clamor of the people and President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s commitment to curb criminality in the country by banning the consumption of beer, wine, liquor and similar intoxicating beverages in public places,” Tan said.
Tan, a doctor, said: “Alcoholism and violence have clearly become key public health issues that require urgent attention. Hence, it is imperative for the country to initiate a national policy to curb alcohol consumption in public places.”
President Duterte announced during his fourth State of the Nation Address that he wants a law ordering all drinking establishments to close at midnight, but Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said Duterte merely wants a ban on liquor consumption by midnight.
According to the World Health Organization, the harmful use of alcohol is a causal factor in more than 200 disease and injury conditions. It also found that 3 million deaths every year result from harmful use of alcohol worldwide and latest causal relationships have been established between harmful drinking and incidence of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis as well as the HIV/AIDS.