EDITORIAL — Better products, safe revelry

With New Year’s Eve just two weeks away, there is renewed debate on what to do with the firecracker and pyrotechnics industry. Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos has revived the proposal for a total ban on firecrackers, ostensibly to promote public safety during the holiday revelry.

Firecracker use was limited to community displays under Executive Order No. 28, which Rodrigo Duterte issued in June 2017 during his presidency. EO 28, however, allows the use of fireworks in homes and other places outside designated community display areas.

Industry players, citing the thousands of people mostly based in Bulacan whose livelihoods depend on firecrackers and pyrotechnics, have instead pushed for stricter implementation of product quality standards and tighter enforcement of the law. The players have also sought assistance from the government in product development, citing the export potential of their products.

Competition posed by imported fireworks has compounded the woes of local manufacturers. Despite the steeper price, the imports provide more awesome displays, making them in demand for all celebratory occasions apart from Christmas.

Republic Act 7183, signed on Jan. 30, 1992, regulates the sale, manufacture, distribution and use of firecrackers and other pyrotechnic devices. Under RA 7183, the following firecrackers are allowed: baby rocket, bawang, small triangulo, pulling of strings, paper caps for toy guns, el diablo, watusi, Judas or Judah’s belt, sky rocket or kwitis and similar items with equivalent explosive content.

Pyrotechnics that are specifically allowed under RA 7183 are sparklers, luces, fountain and the related jumbo, regular and special, mabuhay sparklers, Roman candle, trompillo, whistle bomb, butterfly, airwolf and similar types of pailaw or fireworks devices.

Most of the serious injuries reported during previous holiday revelries involve the use of more powerful firecrackers that are banned, such as huge triangulo and super lolo, whose explosive content can damage cars and concrete pavement. Legitimate manufacturers themselves have lamented the continued proliferation of these dangerous firecrackers, often made in backyards