Days of drinking alcohol in public numbered?

“When I heard about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading.” Henny Youngman

By Alex P. Vidal

THESE past weeks, a lot of Ilonggos have approached us asking where to place a bet between Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao and Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr. who will dispute the WBA/WBC/WBO belts in the Fight of the Century in the gambling capital of the world on May 2.

Without any hesitation, we asked them to go for Pacquiao.

We told them Pacquiao (57-5-2, 38 KOs) is willing to die in the ring just to win this big fight.

Pacquiao, 36, will eat alive or swallow whole Mayweather Jr.(47-0, 26 KOs), if necessary, in order not to disappoint his fans.

This is the first time that he gathered all his family members to be in the ringside when the richest and biggest duel in the history of prizefighting unfurls at the MGM Grand Arena.

Those who believed that Mayweather Jr., 38, is a superior fighter owing to his advantages in height, reach and unbeaten record, of course, disagreed with us.

That’s the beauty of democracy. Good luck, guys.

-o0o-

WE feel safe in walking home at night if our sidewalks are lighted and cleared of characters with unruly behavior and other debris and obstructions.

Thus if our village officials are empowered by a city ordinance, they will be the ones to prevent some unscrupulous residents from using the sidewalks for drinking sessions.

Many people have been avoiding some sidewalks in the villages because they were occupied by a group of men drinking alcohol in public.

Since some of those drinking were residents of the villages, even tanods or village officials were hesitant if not afraid to confront and stop them.

Iloilo City Councilor Jose Efrain Trenas III wants to regulate the use of sidewalks for the drinking binge and loitering, citing reports that “many people now feel unsafe” to use the sidewalks especially at night.

The neophyte councilor also cited security reasons for pushing with the measure known as “An Ordinance Regulating the Consumption of Alcoholic Beverages on Sidewalks and Public Streets”.

He invoked Book III, Art. 3 of Section 458 (4) (v) of the Local Government Code of the Philippines which allows the Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Council) to regulate the sale, giving away or dispensing of any intoxicating malt, vino, mixed or fermented liquors at any retail outlet.

OBSERVED

It added: “It has been observed that some of the city/municipal streets, avenues, alleys, sidewalks, bridges, parks and other public places in Iloilo City are not properly utilized by the road users/public and for safety reasons does not feel secure in passing these areas due to malpractices of some unscrupulous individuals who want only utilize these areas for drinking and loitering,” the proposed ordinance stressed.

“The local government unit shall at most maintain the peace and order by enacting different measures that will possibly prevent and suppress the commission of the crimes inflicted, disorders, lawlessness, and violence.”

Trenas wants to create the Iloilo City Liquor Licensing and Regulatory Council, which will be tasked to issue licenses allowing establishments to sell liquor.

PENALTY

The proposal aims to impose a penalty of P2,000 for those caught drinking in public and selling liquors without licenses.

Geline Joy. D. Samillano, a law student and one of those who co-authored the proposed ordinance in lieu of their subject, clarified that the measure is not a total ban of intoxicated drinks in public.

The ordinance suggests a ban on alcoholic drinks on certain hours only as there have been numerous cases of alcohol-related crimes prevalent on those hours, explained Samilliano, who is helping spread awareness of the proposed ordinance among residents of the metropolis.