In a privilege speech on May 18, 2026, Councilor Elmer Datuin, chairperson of the Baguio City Council’s Committee on Health, pushed to raise the city’s legal drinking age to 21 as part of proposed reforms to the Revised Liquor Code of Baguio City.
With the proposed amendment to the city’s decades-old Liquor Code pending before the Committee on Laws and Governance, Datuin commended the measure as a progressive step in alcohol regulation but also offered research-based recommendations aligned with World Health Organization (WHO) frameworks.
One of the 13 gaps identified by Datuin in the proposed amendatory ordinance is the lack of provisions raising the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) to 21 years.
Both the original and proposed amendatory ordinances prohibit minors from purchasing alcohol in all liquor outlets, with minors defined as persons below 18 years old. Datuin said the current minimum legal drinking age of 18 is anchored on the Civil Code of the Philippines and adopted in the Liquor Code. He proposed aligning the ordinance with scientific evidence supporting a higher MLDA as a cost-effective measure to reduce alcohol-related harm.
“Baguio City, with its dense concentration of university and college students, faces a disproportionate risk of alcohol harm among young adults aged 18-21. The current MLDA of 18 means that incoming freshmen are legally permitted to drink on the day they arrive on campus,” Datuin stated.
He said the current MLDA of 18 is inconsistent with World Health Organization (WHO) neuroscience-based recommendations and runs counter to the ordinance’s objective of protecting the youth.
To address this, he proposed revising the definition of minors to include persons below 21 years old, notwithstanding the definition under the Civil Code of the Philippines.
The said proposal formally adopts the findings of the WHO Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health 2022 that the prefrontal cortex, the part of the human brain responsible for impulse control and risk assessment, is not yet fully developed until approximately age 25.
“The younger a person begins drinking, the greater their lifetime risk of alcohol use disorder, brain damage, and alcohol-related injury. Raising the MLDA to 21 is not punitive. It is protective, preventive, and constitutional,” he said.
If approved, the proposal would make Baguio City the first local government unit to set an MLDA of 21.
With health and sanitation as the central driving force of Datuin’s proposal, WHO frameworks were used to assess the ordinance, identifying both commendable provisions and areas for improvement.
Aside from the absence of a provision raising the MLDA to 21, Datuin identified 12 more gaps in the proposed Liquor Code amendment, saying several provisions fall short of minimum public health safeguards as prescribed by the WHO and national laws.
He said Section 21 on health and sanitation is “critically inadequate,” noting that it only contains general cleanliness requirements and does not meet WHO and Philippine sanitation standards.
He proposed strengthening this provision by requiring liquor establishments to provide sex-segregated toilets, functional handwashing stations with potable water, sanitary bar surfaces, pest control measures, and other minimum health safeguards.
On environmental and public health concerns, Datuin flagged the absence of clear obligations for sanitation of surrounding public spaces, solid waste management, and wastewater disposal.
He proposed requiring establishments to clean nearby sidewalks before opening and after closing, maintain waste segregation systems compliant with national law, and install wastewater treatment measures to prevent discharge into drainage systems and waterways.
Datuin also raised concern over noise regulation, saying the ordinance does not align with WHO nighttime noise standards.
He recommended introducing separate daytime and nighttime noise limits, mandatory monitoring equipment for large establishments, and defined measurement standards to better protect nearby residents.
He further proposed the inclusion of mandatory health warning labels at all points of sale, citing WHO recommendations that highlight risks such as cancer, addiction, and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders.
He also pushed for a minimum unit pricing mechanism study, saying current pricing provisions do not sufficiently deter excessive alcohol consumption.
On spatial regulation, Datuin said the current 50-meter buffer zone for liquor establishments is outdated, citing evidence suggesting a larger separation distance is needed to reduce alcohol-related harm. He proposed increasing buffer zones to 100 meters and strengthening mapping and compliance monitoring.
The councilor also called for clearer referral systems under provisions of the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT); the inclusion of penalties for sanitation violations; and specific protections for pregnant women in alcohol service guidelines.
He likewise recommended removing permanent grandfathering provisions for existing establishments, saying these weaken long-term enforcement of the ordinance. A grandfathering provision is a rule that allows existing businesses or situations to continue operating under old rules even after new and stricter rules are adopted.
Datuin was referring to Section 8 of the proposed ordinance which exempts all existing establishments from the new buffer zone requirements permanently.
The permanent grandfathering clause, Datuin suggested, should be replaced with a conditional exemption. He proposed amending Section 8 to stipulate that the exemption shall automatically lapse (a) upon any change of ownership or operator, (b) any change in the nature or category of the establishment, (c) voluntary or involuntary closure for a continuous period exceeding six months, or (d) lapse, revocation, or non-renewal of the business permit.
Additional recommendations include capacity building for the city’s sanitation inspectors, establishment of an alcohol and health dashboard, partnership with universities for the MLDA implementation, and inclusion of provisions for the consumption of indigenous and cultural alcohol products.
Datuin called on the Baguio City Council to pass the proposed Revised Codified Liquor Ordinance, incorporating his recommendations.
“The health of our people demands nothing less. This opportunity must not be wasted,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, Councilor Paolo Raynor Salvosa, chairperson of the Committee on Laws and Governance leading the review of the proposed ordinance, welcomed Datuin’s recommendation to raise the MLDA to 21.
The Baguio City Council also moved to invite representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO) to its regular session on June 8, 2026 to further refine the ordinance.
A series of stakeholder consultations is also expected to ensure a balance between public health concerns and business considerations.
Vice Mayor Faustino Olowan said the Revised Liquor Code is a landmark measure, likened to the Smoke-Free Ordinance, which could transform the city into a more health-conscious community if implemented effectively. **Jordan G. Habbiling
