CAMP Crame has deployed more policemen to the country’s primary tourist spots amid the influx of local and foreign travelers due to the improving COVID-19 situation and with the onset of the summer season.
PNP spokesman Col. Jean Fajardo said the tourist policemen will not only implement peace and order measures but will likewise ensure that health protocols are strictly followed by all travelers to prevent another surge in coronavirus cases.
“That is one of issues we are focusing on,” Fajardo said, referring to the influx of people to tourist areas, adding: “Although our main focus is (the) election, the PNP cannot just ignore its anti-criminality efforts.”
The PNP and the Armed Forces have been deputized by the Commission on Elections to perform election-related duties, including addressing potential threats in election hotspots.
“Because our COVID alert levels are easing, we’re expecting that people will flock to establishments, public conveyances. With the nearing summer season, we’re expecting there will be influx of people. That’s why we have dedicated tourist policemen who we have deployed especially to large tourist destinations that (have) resumed operations,” Fajardo said.
He could not immediately say how many policemen have been deployed.
Fajardo said tourist policemen will work hand in hand with AFP personnel.
Last week, PNP chief Gen. Dionardo Carlos said police authorities are closely monitoring travelers’ activities in Boracay in Malay town, Aklan, noting a spike in tourist arrivals in the island since the Philippines opened its borders to foreign guests who are allowed visa-free travel to the country’s beach and tourism destinations.
Carlos said the PNP is expecting more tourists to visit the island with the onset of the summer season.
“In view of this we have to ensure the safety of everyone going to the island, not only from the threat of the pandemic but from people who may be planning to commit crimes,” said Carlos.
Carlos said there are 306 tourist policemen who are already in Boracay Island, ready to respond to any untoward incidents.
The Department of Tourism (DOT), through the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID), over the weekend expanded the list of accepted and recognized national COVID-19 vaccination certificates, approving 12 more from countries whose travelers are allowed visa-free travel to the Philippines.
Based on Resolution No. 162 of the IATF-EID, the national/state vaccination certificates of Argentina, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Chile, Denmark, Ecuador, Indonesia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Portugal, and Spain, mainly 12 of the 157 countries that can visit the Philippines visa-free under Executive Order 408, shall be accepted and recognized as other proofs of vaccination required as entry requirements to the Philippines.
“The DOT commits to working with other member agencies of the IATF-EID in making the travel process and requirements to the country easier for balikbayans and foreign tourists alike,” Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat said.
The move, Puyat said, will help in restoring jobs under the heavily impacted tourism industry. — With Edison Gonzales
