Baguio tourism sector appeals for industry reopening

BAGUIO CITY (October 6, 2021)—-The General Community Quarantine (GCQ) with heightened restrictions that limited movements in and out of the city has prompted pleas from the tourism sector hardly making ends meet, especially the tourism workers.

Hence prompting the Baguio Tourism Council (BTC) to appeal to the Baguio City government to reopen the tourism industry.

BTC pleads for the reopening, even on certain restrictions, to sustain the livelihood of thousands of industry workers affected by the lockdowns caused by the Delta variant-driven new surge of COVID-19.

Through Resolution No. 09-2021, BTC is asking the city to allow the entry of fully vaccinated and RT-PCR-tested visitors even on a limited capacity as allowed by the National Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (NIATF-EID).  It said that the economic sector has been reeling from the havoc wrought by the stringent lockdowns that caused business stoppages and lay-offs.

The IATF allows non-essential travels at a minimum 30 percent capacity for areas under General Community Quarantine with Heightened Restrictions, the city’s quarantine status until Oct. 31, 2021.

BTC stated that the industry has enough safeguards as tourism and economic sector frontliners had been 100 percent fully vaccinated and the establishments now well-versed with the existing health and safety protocols.

The BTC added the presentation of vaccination cards and negative RT-PCR test, registration with the visita application and presentation of QTP, personal appearance at the triage and strict compliance to health and safety protocols “would be the perfect balance to revive the economy while not unduly burdening the health care system.”

The city suspended leisure travels starting last Sept. 3 because of the new peak in cases. Before this, tourist travels had been on an on-and-off status as the city officials led by Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong strive to attain a balance between health priorities and economic needs of the residents.

Artemio A. Dumlao