PAGADIAN CITY, AUGUST 8 (PIA)- In order to completely stop the proliferation of locally made fake cigarettes and smuggled fake cigarettes, the provincial government has taken measures to curb this illegal activity in the province.

In the meeting of the members of the Provincial Task Force Against Smuggled Cigarettes (PTFASC) recently, Governor Victor Yu said that the provincial government is conducting a re-orientation and reactivation of the task force so that they know their roles, especially in the fight against cigarette smuggling as mandated by Provincial Ordinance No. 051-2021.

In the report presented by Richard Paragas, the executive for external affairs of the Philippine Tobacco Institute (PTI) it was revealed that in the entire Philippines, Mindanao recorded the highest rate of illicit trade incidents where Zamboanga del Sur also recorded 59.6% and it is the number one in the country in terms of the presence of illegal cigarettes.

Yu said that he was saddened by the report but he considered it as a big challenge for the province and instead, he will intensify the efforts to curb the illegal trade in cigarettes.

The good governor also informed the chiefs of the municipal police stations that the provincial government will give its 100% support to PTFASC by providing vehicles to the police, provide free legal assistance to PNP personnel who may be prone to lawsuits because of the nature of their duties, and other necessary support to finally stop the illegal activity in the province.

Yu said that the smuggling and illicit trade of cigarettes, is not only affecting the smokers' health but also damaging the country's economy.

He ordered the PNP to strictly enforce the law and arrest those who smuggle fake cigarettes. "We discourage their entry and sale of smuggled cigarettes in our province," Yu said.

In the report, it was learned that the counterfeiting manufacturers who imitate branded cigarettes and selling in the domestic market, tried many times to enter the province by loading fake cigarettes on land and sea vehicles but this was intercepted and caught by the PNP personnel.

Meanwhile, Paragas was impressed and thanked of the provincial government in reactivating the provincial government of PTFASC because it created the beacon of hope for Filipinos.

"With this Task Force, we are creating a beacon of hope for Filipinos especially for senior citizens and children because I believe that with the proper collection of taxes from legitimate cigarettes, the government will be able to build several infrastructure projects through the ‘build, build, build program,’ Paragas concluded.  (RVC/EDT/GCC/PIA-Zamboanga del Sur)