Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco has proposed the establishment of a new flagship project, the 24/7 tourist courts, to aid in the swift resolution of cases where tourists are involved.
“We are now working with the DOJ, and we will be collaborating with the judiciary department for the establishment of a 24-hour tourist court for the resolution of crimes related to our tourists,” the Secretary said during a briefing for the proposed budget of the DOT for the 2025 fiscal year held at the House of Representatives in Quezon City, Tuesday (Aug. 20).
Frasco acknowledged that the Philippines still has room for improvement in tourism, assuring the body that the Department is doing its best to welcome more visitors, including lobbying for efforts to increase connectivity by expanding the country’s routes development system, notwithstanding all varied tourism offerings that are being offered and those that are yet to be developed for promotion.
The DOT is also beefing up police forces across strategic locations of the country, primarily in areas with a high concentration of tourists.
Over 8,000 police personnel under the Department’s Tourist Oriented Police for Community Order and Protection (TOPCOP) Program have already been trained, done in collaboration with the DILG and PNP. But with the need to intensify police visibility and security, the DOT has also trained 270 barangay tanod and barangay intelligence network as police multipliers at present.
