Taxes to protect and fund universal health care (UHC)—such as those slapped on so-called "sin" products like cigarettes, alcoholic drinks, and sweets—still have room for further increases, according to a global task force. "Health taxes continue to be underutilized despite the...
CAMP VICENTE LIM, Laguna – Police seized smuggled cigarettes worth P2.2 million and arrested a suspected smuggler in a buy-bust operation on Tuesday afternoon, October 15, in Barangay Biga, Calatagan, Batangas. The Police Regional Office 4-A identified the suspect as alias Alwin, 48, a resident...
ILOILO CITY – Police seized fake cigarettes valued at P1.1 million from a 57-year-old businessman before dawn here on Saturday, October 12. The Iloilo City Police Office identified the suspect as Rogel from Lapuz District. POLICE recovered fake cigarettes valued at more than P1.1 million in...
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has dealt a significant blow to the illicit trade in the country by dismantling four large-scale manufacturers of counterfeit cigarettes operating in Pampanga. This operation, the largest of its kind under BIR Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui Jr.'s leadership,...
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has confiscated over 1.3 million packs of untaxed cigarettes valued at P838 million during two separate raids on warehouses in Quezon City and Caloocan City. BIR Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui Jr., who led the operations, emphasized the agency's unwavering...
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Smuggled cigarettes valued at P1.7 million were found floating on the coastline of Barangay Kayok, Liloy, Zamboanga del Norte on Thursday, August 29. Police retrieved the contraband after receiving a report from a concerned citizen. The abandoned tobacco products were sent...
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) seized approximately P500 million worth of smuggled cigarettes during a raid on warehouses in Bulacan on Thursday, Aug. 22. The Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service-Manila International Container Port (CIIS-MICP) conducted the inspection and also seized...
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Smuggled cigarettes valued at P20 million were seized in Sulu on Sunday, August 18. PHILIPPINE Navy personnel intercepted smuggled cigarettes valued at P20.4 million in the sea of Sulu. (Navforwem) The BRP Laurence Narag (PG 907) under Naval Task Force 61 of the Naval...
BAGUIO CITY – More than P2-million worth of confiscated vapes and cigarettes were destroyed by the Smoke-Free Task Force here on Wednesday August 8. CONFISCATED cigarettes and vapes worth P2 million were publicly destroyed in Baguio City on August 8. (Baguio PIO photo) City Health Services Office...
Illegal cigarettes estimated at P3 million were intercepted in Kapatagan and Sultan Naga Dimaporo, Lanao del Norte. The Bureau of Customs-Port of Cagayan de Oro (BOC-CDO) on July 25 issued a warrant of seizure and detention against the 4,300 reams of undocumented cigarettes. The confiscated...
By Sonny Daanoy With upper respiratory tract infections and hypertension as leading diseases among prisoners, the Department of Health (DOH) called on Monday, July 15, for heightened enforcement of the smoking ban in jails. Photo from Pixabay "I think we should ban smoking in our jails...
The purchasing of illegal cigarettes has increasingly become a normal behavior among adult smokers in the Philippines and three other countries, according to a study by Japan Tobacco International (JTI). Based on its study titled “Fighting the Dark Underworld,” which also included France, the...
