The local Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) of Puerto Princesa announced on November 22 the guidelines after the city was placed on Alert Level 2 by the national government.
Local IATF Spokesperson Atty. Norman Yap revealed during the live update of the City Information Department yesterday that the opening of tourism in Puerto Princesa is still being scrutinized by the agency.
“May possibility po na magluluwag pa tayo doon sa travel protocols. Pero hindi ko papangunahan yung IATF kasi madaming members dun. Siyempre, una nating inaaral ngayon ay yung come back ng tourism so yun kasama po yun [at] laging nasa agenda po yun [reopening of tourism],” Yap said.
He also said that the current community quarantine classification might change by November 30 thus, they will wait before deciding on the reopening of the tourism and appropriate mandate for domestic and international tourists.
“Meron ng planong nagawa yung ating representative from the private tourism sector. At ‘yun ay ita-tackle bago tayo mag-decide kung anong magiging travel protocol natin from December 1 to December 15,” he added.
On the mandate of the national government in regards to the Alert Level Systems, classification of each area may change every 15th or 30th of the month as the Department of Health (DOH) sees fit.
Either decreasing or increasing restrictions are may be imposed depending on the COVID-19 average daily cases, two-week growth rate or average daily attack rate, and occupancy rates of hospital beds, according to the national guidelines on Alert Level Systems.
“Hindi ko muna sabihin kung ito pa rin ba o magdadagdag tayo ng exceptions or luluwag pa lalo possible yun maraming possibilities the same way na possible din na maghigpit,” he stated.
The tourism industry in Puerto Princesa is a vital source of its economy. Since the pandemic that stopped the world in 2020 occurred, many businesses have shut down, but some are still hoping to get through it barely above water or staying afloat until the local government starts welcoming tourists back in the city.
On August 6, 2021, Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat and Deputy Chief Implementer of National Action Plan Against COVID-19 Secretary Vivencio ‘Vince’ Dizon visited Puerto Princesa to kick-off vaccination of tourism frontliners in the A4 category with the aims of helping protect them against COVID-19 and finally reopening the tourism sector in the city.
“Importante talaga ang A4 kasi masyadong marami ang nawalan ng trabaho lalo na dito sa Puerto Princesa [dahil] more than 1 year na hindi kayo bukas [ang turismo] sa NCR,” DOT Secretary said.
“Importante kasi siyempre ngayon ‘di ba pinag-uusapan na kung fully vaccinated puwede nang mag-travel [at] wala ng RT-PCR pero ang sa akin dapat protektahan, lalo na’t may Delta variant, ang tourism workers para hindi lang ang turista ang protektado pero ‘yung nagtatrabaho [rin] sa turismo,” Puyat added.
Yap reminded the public that the easing of restriction does not mean that COVID-19 is no longer a threat, but a means to help the economy.
“Nagbubukas tayo hindi dahil wala na ang COVID, hindi dahil ligtas na talaga lumabas, kung hindi napipilitan na po tayo magbukas para po guminhawa naman yung ekonomiya po natin. Kasi we’re down to our knees na po talaga sa revenue at economy po natin…so kaya’t kailangan natin mag-reopen. At pangalawa doon, naka-ramp up na rin tayo sa vaccination…” Yap said.
He reiterated that the current travel mandate stays the same as announced on November 13. It includes permitting home quarantine of fully vaccinated inbound travelers as long as they meet the conditions set by the IATF as well as coordinating their flights with the Incident Management Team (IMT).
Currently, flights to Puerto Princesa City are only scheduled on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays to regulate the frequency of flights and volume of passengers.