MAYO, VINCENT PAUL B.

One of the most visible impacts of COVID-19 in the Philippines is seen in the
tourism industry. Our country’s economy decreased and thousands of jobs are
terminated due to the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the DOT data, it showed that
there has been an increased number of domestic tourist in the Philippines. Sadly, due to
the Covid-19 pandemic, the tourism sector subsided to 68% from January to June 2020.
As the pandemic rises, the department of Tourism strongly prohibited all tourism
activities causing our economy to shatter. 5.7 million Filipinos employed for tourism are
currently asking for their jobs back but the DOT have stated that they cannot just easily
implement as long as the LGU’s and the private sectors are ready.
Moreover, I may say that the DOT is working their jobs well by preparing different
tourist spots with their hospitals, insuring the health protocols are done correctly and
lastly making sure that emergency preparedness is being implemented. Different places
offer different tourist activities, to which different protocols are also needed, of which
other tourist spots are known for their diving and surfing activities, and some are best
for its island hopping and more so even if the place is under MGCQ, where 50%
capacity of tourism is allowed and only locals can visit for now, still the DOT together
with the LGU’s and their private sectors have to work hard in order to open tourist spots
to public not until ready.
For now, I can relate to what DOT Secretary Bernadette have said regarding to
what the ASEAN members were talking about “travel bubble/ corridor” to countries with
low Covid-19 cases. In our case (in the Philippines) she was right about the idea of
“travel bubble/ corridor” being possible within our country because the Philippines is
made up of 7,641 islands with around 12 international airports, each one is differently hit
by the Covid-19 virus. Therefore the procedure in receiving the tourist in each tourist
spots are not the same. First and foremost, each of these island must have facilities for
identifying and preventing the virus so that the tourist will be checked by these facilities
in order to control the spread of the Covid-19 virus this will definitely make domestic
tourism possible.
"Slow but sure", this quote is already in the making such as for Bohol, they are
slowly opening tourism only for locals until their laboratory is ready for handling other
tourists. Same with Boracay, they will also test people before coming in and giving them
survey forms to answer before booking their reservations in an authorized resort. A lot
of people may have lost their jobs but I would also like to agree to what the DOT
secretary have said regarding this matter. Supporting locals by buying local online can
greatly help people who shifted their jobs temporarily to online selling. By supporting our
very own locals, we help people survive during this time of pandemic.
May this pandemic also remind a of lot Filipino people to support and help one
another. Tourism may be one of the factors that greatly affect our economy but we must
also think about the safety of each and every one for life itself is priceless.