Welcoming 2021 with a bang!
The Fireworks Law provides for various regulations on fireworks as part of the so-called police power of the state to ensure the general public’s welfare
Published in Daily Tribune on January 1, 2021
by:
In a typical Filipino New Year celebration, you often see kids jumping around wishing to grow taller, your cousins and siblings banging on kalderos or blowing horns to invite good fortune, your parents, titos and titas yelling to start eating the media noche, and everyone lighting lots of firecrackers and fireworks.
These are Filipino practices rooted in the belief that we, by welcoming the new year energetically, are inviting good fortune to us and our loved ones.
With what 2020 wrought, I would scream my lungs out, bang every kaldero, and light every firework I can if it would ensure a prosperous and a better 2021.
However, with the call for social distancing amid the pandemic, fireworks display may not be as prevalent as they used to be.
With the current regulations on fireworks display, the general public is advised to find alternatives to celebrating the Filipino New Year.
To those who cannot stick to used pans or tin cans but who must welcome 2021 with a bang, you may want to read Executive Order 28, series of 2017, and Republic Act 7183 (Fireworks Law). These govern the sale, manufacture, distribution and use of firecrackers and other pyrotechnic devices.
The Fireworks Law provides for various regulations on fireworks as part of the so-called police power of the state to ensure the general public’s welfare.
It provides for what firecrackers and pyrotechnic devices are allowed (Section 2), the requirements for licensing the manufacture and distribution of said fireworks (Section 4), qualifications of the entities dealing with the same (Section 5 and 6) and safety guidelines for the manufacture, distribution and use of fireworks (Section 7 to 10).
A defining characteristic of this law is that it delegates the determination of prohibited fireworks and the various necessary regulations to the Philippine National Police
. These regulations must always be formulated in consultation with the general public and coordinated with the Departments of Health, Interior and Local Government and Environment and Natural Resources, Bureau of Fire Protection and local authorities for implementation.
With the goal of curbing the rising count of fatalities and incidents related to fireworks, the President issued Executive Order 28 in 2017 imposing a nationwide restriction on the use of firecrackers to community fireworks display, which is conducted on the occasion or as part of a celebration or event, the display of which must be supervised by a trained person licensed by the PNP with the required permits allowing the said showcase.
Further, permits for showcases will no longer be issued, and only those issued before 16 December 2020 will be honored subject to local government ordinances. Non-community fireworks display is allowed subject again to regulations and limitations imposed by the PNP.
As of the writing of this article, there is a strict ban on non-community fireworks display and firecrackers like watusi, five-star, atomic triangle, plapla, and super lolo, but pyrotechnics or pailaws are allowed such as fountains, luces, whistle devices, butterflies, etc.
However, the reader would do well to check local ordinances to appropriately apprise himself on the allowance and prohibitions on fireworks.
In localities that allow the sale and use of certain fireworks, buyers should always conduct their own due diligence to ensure that they buy only from licensed sellers as an assurance that they are buying fireworks at par with government safety standards and that they have recourse for purchases of defective ones.
The general public should know that if they breach these regulations, they may face fines of from P20,000 to P30,000 and/or imprisonment from six months to one year (Section 11 of Fireworks Law).
With the current regulations on fireworks display, the general public is advised to find alternatives to celebrating the Filipino New Year, if not keeping the fireworks at a minimum.
As we hope for a better 2021, it is best that we enter the coming year — safe, secure and with all our limbs intact. Happy New Year and cheers for a better 2021!
