LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Saying the freedom to spit is not absolute, the provincial board on Tuesday approved a Tublay town ordinance that banned and penalized the wanton spitting of betel nut juice or “moma.”

Earlier, some officials expressed doubt on the legality of the measure whose enactment raised eyebrows in Tublay’s communities dominated by the Ibaloi, one of four major tribes in Benguet.

Members of the provincial board debated on whether the ordinance was discriminatory or if it violated the constitutional prohibition against class legislation since the ordinance only sought to punish those who spit moma.

Tublay’s town council approved the ordinance on June 6 after noticing that the town’s sidewalks and other public areas had become unsanitary because of moma spit.

Moma is a collective mixture of betel nut, gawed (a local nut), lime, tobacco and other ingredients which, when chewed, blended well and produce reddish spittle.

Under the ordinance, residents are required to properly dispose of their moma by asking them to carry a spittoon, a receptacle or container where they could spit.

Those caught spitting anywhere would be fined P2,500 or imprisoned for not more than six months.

Board Member Johnny Uy, the board’s agriculture committee chair, said the ordinance appeared biased since it only penalized betel nut chewers and not residents who spit practically anywhere.

“How about those who spit indiscriminately without necessarily chewing betel nut?” he asked.

But Board Member Juan Nazarro Jr. said the measure prohibited moma because when it is spit out, its reddish color makes the sidewalks look dirty and unsanitary.

“The ordinance is a lawful exercise of Tublay’s power to promote the community’s general welfare as defined under the Local Government Code,” Nazarro, a lawyer, said.