‘Cimatu’s plan is to turn over a successful finished project to the next administration, something that should be emulated by other civil servants in this administration.’
THE bellwether of Philippine tourism is Boracay, that exotic, tropical island in the Visayas which is famous the world over for its white, pristine beaches. Through the years, Boracay has been the go-to place for foreign tourists — Europeans, Americans, Koreans, Japanese and Chinese mostly — choosing to spend their winters and fall in this paradise by the sea, with lots of sunshine and fun. Filipino travelers are also proud of this place.
Boracay’s commercial success came with a downside, however. Pollution, congestion, floods and petty crimes and illegal land acquisition came with the influx of tourists and businesses. The situation has deteriorated even before the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting President Duterte to call Boracay a “cesspool” and creating a task force to oversee the rehabilitation of the island.
The Boracay Inter-agency Task Force (BIATF) which is co-chaired by the departments of tourism and the interior and local government, was created on May 8, 2018 under Executive Order 53. The task force’s term was extended twice until June 30, 2022 to allow it to finish its work.
Secretary Roy Cimatu, head of BIATF, said the water quality along the beaches of Boracay has significantly improved, noting that the coliform level was high before the rehabilitation started in 2018. He believes that the June 2022 target is realistic for the total completion of the island’s rehabilitation.
Despite its effort to clear the beaches of permanent commercial structures, the BIATF reported that demolition of establishments encroaching the shoreline easement is now 83 percent complete. The effort was obviously snagged and delayed by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, that rendered every economic activity in the country at a standstill for some time.
Meanwhile, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said the vaccination of residents and personnel in tourist-oriented establishments is expected to reach 100 percent in this week, with some 35,100 doses of Pfizer vaccine beefing up the island’s supply.
It should be noted that the national government’s intervention in Boracay was not only designed to satisfy the tourists but also to take care of local residents. The panel said affected fisherfolk were given cash assistance amounting to almost P1 million by the local governments of Malay and Aklan as well as by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
Secretary Cimatu intends to complete their work in Boracay before the 2022 elections, hoping to “have the proper mechanisms in place, so our hard work and efforts would not turn to naught.”
Cimatu’s plan is to turn over a successful finished project to the next administration, something that should be emulated by other civil servants in this administration.
