A TECHNICAL working group (TWG) is expected to be formed to continue to manage Boracay Island, one of the country’s most popular tourism destinations.
The proposal to create the TWG was discussed in a meeting called by Aklan Gov. Jose Enrique “Joen” Miraflores on Tuesday and attended by representatives of the local government units of Aklan and Malay; the Departments of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Interior and Local Government (DILG), Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and Tourism (DOT); and the island stakeholders’ groups.
In an interview with the BusinessMirror, DOT-Region 6 (Western Visayas) Director Christine Mansinares said Miraflores wanted to find out from the key government agencies what developments have ensued following the end of the term of the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF) on June 30. They “discussed updates on the Boracay Action Plan, and the creation of a TWG for Boracay to continue to harmonize/align sustainable development efforts,” she said.
As per the discussion, the TWG will be chaired by Miraflores and co-chaired by Malay Mayor Floribar Bautista and will include Region 6 directors of the regular line government agencies, along with representatives of the indigenous people’s community, and other stakeholder groups. The governor is expected to issue an executive order creating the TWG, as soon as the “focal persons” for each agency and stakeholder groups are identified, she added.
Projects for 2023
The participating government agencies also discussed their proposed projects for Boracay for 2023. For the DOT, said Mansinares, it will be “basically capacity-building projects, since the Tieza [Tourism Infrastructure and Economic Zone Authority] project has already been absorbed by the DPWH. So the DOT projects will revolve mainly on marketing and promotions, and product development.”
Among other points raised, according to stakeholders, who requested anonymity, was the creation of a “Workers Village” in mainland Caticlan. This was among the plans of the BIATF, which have been left pending. “We can haggle for additional carrying capacity if we can decongest [the island] and have a site for the Workers Village. This was a project discussed a long time ago by the BIATF,” said a stakeholder.
For her part, Mansinares said the plan includes the relocation of informal settlers in critical areas such as wetlands to the said village on the mainland. “They just have to identify the site for the village,” she noted.
The DOT official said during the meeting, Mayor Bautista also promised to “revisit” their masking mandate, as tourists go to the island to breathe in its fresh air. Tourists who forget to put on their masks while walking on the beach have complained of being harassed by the Philippine National Police. While they are being arrested, the tourists are detained on the beach for unusually long periods, while the police personnel takes down their personal details.
BIATF projects still not completed
The BIATF was created under President Rodrigo Duterte, and oversaw the rehabilitation of the island, which included fixing easement issues and cleaning up portions of its environment. Prior to the termination of the task force, it “turned over” the island to the local government supposedly due to the completion of their rehabilitation work.
In actuality, the drainage project on the island still remains to be completed by the DPWH, as well as the completion of the main road, in the portion going to Mount Luho. The DPWH continues to have right-of-way problems with regard to the main road project, as informal settlers continue to reside there.
The DPWH picked up the slack from the local government units, which were supposed to have solved the right-of-way problem. Mansinares and other stakeholders interviewed by the BusinessMirror said DPWH did not say when these main projects will be completed.
DENR, for its part, continues to deal with court cases arising from the “[removal] of illegal structures in protected zones,” she said.
Image credits: Erwin Lim/Department of Tourism