AFTER terminating its contract with advertising agency DDB Philippines for its botched “I Love the Philippines” campaign, the Department of Tourism (DOT) has also suspended a separate P124.45 million contract with the agency for consulting services for the “promotion of Philippine islands, award-winning Philippine destinations and tourism products.”
Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco told the House committee on appropriation’s hearing on the DOT’s P2.6 billion proposed budget for 2024 that the six-month contract, which was supposed to end on August 31, was suspended because of the department’s “exercise of the necessary due diligence to ensure that it safeguards the interest of the department as well as the country.”
Frasco was responding to Rep. Marissa del Mar Magsino (PL, OFW), who inquired about the status of the contract and the termination of the P49.92 million advertising deal with DDB after it admitted having used foreign stock footage in an audio-video presentation (AVP) flashed at the launch of the new tourism campaign Love the Philippines on June 29 and posted by the agency on social media.
Magsino also asked for the status of a P12.99 million contract between DDB Philippines and the DOT’s Tourism Promotion Board (TPB), for consulting services for its “Meetings, Incentive Travel, Conventions and Exhibitions” or MICE campaign.
TPB Chief Operating Officer Margarita Nograles said the DOT is pushing for the campaign and so far, “(the) deliverables were okay and ready for launch.”
“We did a thorough review of the Terms of References and the deliverables of DDB and so far, all have been okay. We will continue on with that,” she told the panel chaired by Rep. Zaldy Co (PL, Ako Bicol).
Rep. France Castro expressed disappointment that the DOT has not filed charges against DDB, saying the fiasco caused so much embarrassment to the whole country.
Undersecretary for legal and special concerns Ma. Elaine Bathan, a lawyer, told the panel the DOT can still opt to file a legal complaint “should it be warranted.”
“But as we said, there was already a forfeiture of the performance bond as part of the penalty aside from the termination and cancelation, and the non-payment of any relative expenses that have been incurred relative to the project,” she said.
Bathan said the priority of the department was to immediately terminate and cancel the contract as she assured the panel that the budget for the campaign remains intact.
She admitted that DOT top officials were the ones who gave the go-signal for the posting of the video campaign on social media and disclosed that two rank-and-file employees have resigned.
During the hearing, some lawmakers also expressed willingness to eventually move for the increase in the DOT’s P2.6 billion proposed budget, citing the huge difference from the department’s P3.4 billion budget this year.
Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy (PL, BH) was worried that the DOT’s performance will suffer as it is still working to restore to pre-pandemic levels the country’s tourism revenue.
She noted that while the number of tourist arrivals is already around 3.5 million this year, there is still a long way to return to the pre-pandemic levels of 8.6 million tourists annually.
An opposition lawmaker, Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman of the Liberal Party said he was hoping the panel will eventually move to augment the DOT’s meager budget for 2024.
