DOT Identifies More Roads to Build to Spike Tourism

 By Mortz C. Ortigoza 

MANAOAG,Pangasinan – To increase the volume of people that could patronize the tourist spots in Region-1, the Director of the Department of Tourism (DOT) identify more roads for the government to build.

“Ang ginagawa po ng DOT ay kami po ay nag –a identify ng sector development area and we have to assist ang road na ni request ni mayor is leading toward that (tourism) destination so we can increase accessibility,” DOT Regional Director Joseph Francisco R. Ortega told Northern Watch Newspaper when asked about his accomplishment in the vaunted P1.15 trillion National Tourism Development Plan (NTDP) by the administration of then President Rodrigo Duterte to boost tourism in the Philippines.

The Departments of Public Works and Highways and Tourism  undertake two  road projects in Libacao, Aklan to improve tourism, trade, and industry in the area.

The NTDP covered 2, 620 kilometers road networks, airports, cruise ports, railway, site infrastructure, tourism enterprise zones, transport units, accommodation facilities, and aircraft acquisition.

Ortega said that even President Ferdinand R. Marcos and DOT Secretary Maria Esperanza Christina Garcia Frasco advocate the same more road access projects of the previous administration.

When he joined the DOT-Region 1 in the late 2019, Ortega saw the problem confronted by tourists like the expensive prices of goods and services and the hassles one encounter in going to the intended establishments.

He cited San Juan, La Union, the surfing capital in Northern Luzon, where it was enmeshed before with garbage problems and scarcity of restaurants.

“Pag pumunta ako doon pipila po tatlong beses dahil ako sa labas lilipat po ako tatlong beses dahil puno. Ganoon po karami iyong tao at hindi po naman dati. Dito po pumapasok ang importance ng makapag activate tayo ng ibang towns, city towns and siyempre we want to increase traffic sa ibang town para hind na lumabas ang tao doon sa ibang towns,” Ortega explained how his office eased out the burden of tourists in La Union, Province.

The road tourism projects help also residents with degree or certificate in hotel business to seek work in the region instead of looking for one in Manila.

He cited that the most sought tourist locations in Pangasinan are the The Minor Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag in this town and the pristine beaches of Bolinao.

“Here in the province of Pangasinan the most producing in the region. In fact ang Manaoag sa stat (statistics) noong 2019 produced eight million visitors and in fact Bolinao is one of the biggest producing traffics as destination in the region”

Pangasinan government tourism head Malou Elduayan said the province benefited on President Duterte’s Build –Build -Build Projects through the creation of more roads near the beaches of Dasol and Bani towns.

“During that time nag benefit po talaga ang western Pangasinan because our edge and our (inaudible) actually most of our tourist destination are considered to be safe destination because it is outdoor directed the activities tourist got engaged into safe to hold”.

She talked about the safety protocols while encouraging tourists to visit the mammoth province during the onslaught of the pandemic’s corona virus dieses -19 (COVID-19).

Ortega, Eduayan, and other stakeholders of tourism were in this town lately for the launching of the Marian Pilgrimage Circuit featuring the various Marian Shrines of canonically crowned images of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the four provinces of the Ilocos Region.