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Boracay reopens after six-month rehabilitation


World-renowned tourist destination Boracay Island reopened to local and foreign tourists on Friday after it was closed by the government for a six-month environmental rehabilitation.

 

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu, and Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar Albayalde were in the island resort as it re-opened  for business.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Public Works and Highways chief Mark Villar, and Social Welfare and Development Secretary Rolando Bautista were also there.

“Our efforts have proven once again that change is indeed possible with a strong political will as our dear President Duterte has exhibited an eagerness to work together for love of country,” Puyat said in her speech.

Super Radyo dzBB's Jonathan Andal reported that more than 600 policemen, soldiers and personnel from the Philippine Coast Guard were deployed to ensure the security in Boracay.

According to the Department of Tourism (DOT), a total of 157 accommodation establishments have been allowed by the Boracay Inter-agency Task Force to accept visitors.

She thanked the island’s stakeholders and other local government agencies for their respective roles in the rehabilitation efforts.

“I would like to acknowledge and thank our stakeholders for their patience and support and cooperation during the six-month rehabilitation, for our accredited establishments and those working hard to be one-hundred percent compliant with the DENR, DOT and DILG. Thank you for your efforts,” she said.

Puyat encouraged the public to be responsible tourists so that what happened to Boracay in the past would not happen to other vacation spots in the country.

“It is the key to the preservation of this national treasure. The Boracay experience is the ultimate lesson in balancing development and protecting the environment. The lessons learned here are not for Boracay alone but also for the other island destinations around our beautiful country,” she said.

Reopening Boracay is only the beginning of her advocacy on sustainable tourism.

“Together let us ensure that generations from now, our children, children’s children would still say ‘It’s more fun in the Philippines’,” she said.

 

 

 

 

The DOT earlier said it would limit the number of tourist arrivals in Boracay to only 6,405 per day.

The number of tourists in Boracay is now limited to only 6,405 per day.

President Rodrigo Duterte called the island a “cesspool” and ordered government agencies to solve the environmental issues plaguing the island. —Anna Felicia Bajo/KBK/VDS, GMA News

Tags: boracay, boracayrehab
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