Access bracelets eyed for Boracay tourists —DILG

The government is looking at requiring tourists to avail of access bracelets to enter Boracay as a security measure and to regulate the number of visitors on the island, a top official of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said Saturday.

"Ang paggamit ng bracet ay pinag-aaralan pa po 'yan para ma-monitor ang pumapasok na tao sa isla," DILG Undersecretary Epimaco Densing said in an interview on Super Radyo dzBB.

"There is a proposal pero wala pa pong implementation," Densing said.

The Boracay island has been closed for a six-month rehabilitation due to environmental woes. The island is scheduled to be reopened on October 26 with a dry run and soft opening set from October 16 to 25.

Densing said the government will limit the number of tourists entering Boracay as the study found that its carrying capacity is 55,000 persons per day.

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said the Department of Tourism will limit the number of tourist arrivals in Boracay to only 6,405 per day as only 19,000 tourists will be allowed in Boracay at any given time. 

Densing said Boracay's carrying capacity of 55,000 per day is divided into two—36,000 residents and workers and 19,000 tourists.

The DILG official said Boracay island can carry fewer tourists than residents and workers based on their usage of resources.

"Halimbawa ang pagligo sa dagat—kung turista ka, araw-araw ka halos maliligo. Kung ikaw ay residente hindi ka lagi maliligo [sa dagat]. Sa paggamit ng tuwalya, isang linggo bago labhan kung ikaw ay residente. Kapag ikaw ay turista isang araw lalabhan," Densing said. —Ted Cordero/KG, GMA News