GMA to name officials of 3 DOT agencies soon

MANILA, Philippines - President Arroyo is expected to name in the next few weeks the officials of three agencies under the Department of Tourism (DOT) tasked to implement tourism programs this year.

Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano reported that the Tourism Congress is expected to convene for the third time by the end of the month to submit their nominations for the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), the Tourism Infrastructure and Economic Zone Authority (TIEZA), and the Duty Free Philippines Corp. (DFPC).    

The list of nominees will be submitted to Malacañang for approval.

Meanwhile, Tourism Congress officials gave their full support for the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the new Tourism Act.

As the initial step in the implementation of Republic Act 9593, the DOT convened last November the first-ever Tourism Congress, composed of representatives from the tourism sector.

“We feel more stable with the creation of the Tourism Congress, provided for in the Act. This sense of security is from the assurance that private sector players now have a say in the direction of tourism in our country,” said Angel Bognot, president of the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies Association Inc. (NAITAS). 

Bognot said the DOT Task Force complied with the mandates of the law the best way it could and followed procedures in the drafting of the IRR.

Mina Gabor, former tourism secretary who was elected presiding officer for the first session of the Tourism Congress, also backed the IRR, including the next steps taken after its promulgation.

“I was part of the consultative meetings in drafting the set of rules and guidelines, and further on in crafting the body’s constitution and by-laws,” she said.

Gabor said the Task Force had done extensive consultations nationwide, resulting in an encompassing perspective of the tourism industry prior to the drafting of the IRR.

For her part, Ma. Paz Alberto, president of the Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA), said the members of the Task Force, with their 40-year and 20-year track records, painstakingly did their part in making sure that everything was covered.

IRR critics claimed that the IRR caused divisions within the industry due to “overlapping and duplicating functions.”  

But contrary to the allegations, Tourism Congress officials said the new set-up provided by the new tourism law needed a specific organizational flow, which was integral in determining key roles and responsibilities.

“At this stage where everything is a work in progress, certain issues are perhaps ‘birth pains’ we all need to undergo. However, we must remember that being proactive plays a big part. We should stick to pushing the industry forward, not pulling it down,” Alberto said.

Earlier, some members of the tourism industry sought the nullification of the IRR of the newly approved Tourism Act.

Officials of the Federation of Tourism Industries of the Philippines (FTIP) said they are filing a lawsuit to void the existing IRR.

But Durano said the Tourism Congress, which has an official and unified voice, can, by itself, determine whether there is a need to amend the IRR.

He said the DOT would take the necessary action only upon the recommendation of the Tourism Congress, which represents 99 percent of the industry and not only a few individuals.