THE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority will go hard in its campaign against smoking to attain 100 percent smoke-free Metro Manila in the coming days.

The agency trained 25 enforcers for three days to arm them with the necessary skills and legal knowledge in the use of various communication tools to enforce the tobacco regulation law.

Dr. Risa Yapchiongco, project manager of the MMDA-Blooberg smoke-free project, said the activity will pave the way for similar trainings so that all Metro traffic enforcers will be equipped with the same skills needed to enforce the law.

“With this training, we hope to provide the participants the needed knowledge and coach them on how they can effectively communicate the campaign to their respective teams,” Yapchiongco said.

The training was facilitated by the MMDA and the University of the Philippines-College of Mass Communication, in cooperation with the University of the Philippines-College of Law Development Foundation, and public health groups, Health Justice and New Vois Association of the Philippines.

Among the participants were district heads of the agency, street sweepers and traffic enforcers.

The MMDA is currently in partnership with the New York-based foundation Bloomberg Philantrophies to make Metro Manila a smoke-free region by 2012. The MMDA is set to receive 15% of the P9.5 million grant from Bloomberg as initial tranche of the amount by June this year to fund its anti-smoking campaign.

For her part, Atty. Irene Reyes, legal counsel of New Vois, said there is a pressing need to boost the Tobacco Regulation Act by educating the front-liners in the campaign.

The Tobacco Regulation Act prohibits smoking in centers of youth and children activities such as schools, universities and recreational facilities for children, elevators, public and private hospitals and health care facilities, airports and bus terminals.

In Metro Manila, seven cities have already adopted anti-smoking ordinances with Makati City as the first one to pass such no smoking ordinance.

Reyes said a 2010 survey conducted by the Department of Health (DOH) showed high levels of particulate matter (PM2.5) in hospitals, restaurants and entertainment venues in Metro Manila.

According to the study, visitors in these places will be exposed to six times the daily acceptable levels set by the World Health Organization (WHO).