The city government asked the transportation secretary to reconsider the re-opening of Puerto Princesa International Airport to commercial flights.
In a letter, Mayor Lucilo Bayron told Secretary Arthur Tugade that the reopening of commercial domestic flights in the city is “pointless” citing that based on IATF guidelines, tourism players are still prohibited from opening even under general community quarantine (GCQ).
“We believe that it will be pointless to start commercial flights considering the fact that the IATF guidelines still prohibit the operation of hotels, restaurants and tourist destinations. Where would the tourists stay, eat and go?,” Bayron’s letter read.
“The city has no available RTPCR confirmatory test for COVID-19. It takes 7-10 days to get a result from Manila after sending a sample of a COVID suspect since the island is isolated,” added the mayor.
Bayron explained that Ospital ng Palawan, the only government hospital in the province that caters to COVID-19 suspect patients is still being prepared for accreditation, trainings of the personnel who will do the testing, licensing and the like.
Because of these reasons, the city mayor is asking for the reconsideration of the planned reopening of commercial flights in Puerto Princesa.
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