The Boracay Inter-agency Task Force (BIATF) denounced the entry of a group of travelers to Boracay recently prior to the island’s official reopening for breaching health protocols.
One of the said guests, a Bureau of Fire Protection employee, has tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
The task force said the Department of Tourism (DOT) is also revoking the accreditation of the resort that housed the group from June 12 to 14.
“The guests checked in on June 12 and ‘pretended’ to be part of the BIATF delegation.”
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said the guests checked in on June 12 and “pretended” to be part of the BIATF delegation when it convened a meeting on the island from June 11-12.
Although accredited by the DOT, the concerned hotel at that time had no Certificate of Authority to Operate, which is issued by the agency after ensuring it has certain health and safety protocols in place.
“That’s already a violation and (the guest) found out that she was COVID-positive… We already revoked the accreditation of the hotel,” Romulo-Puyat said.
“Contact tracing had been conducted immediately.”
The tourism chief noted that contact tracing had been conducted immediately and that the hotel staff who came in contact with the guest have been quarantined.
Boracay was re-opened to tourists from Western Visayas on June 16 on the recommendation of the Aklan government and the approval of the BIATF.
The tourism head said the reopening of Boracay to select travelers serves as a dry run for the island resort once it accepts more tourists from other regions.
“Maybe after two weeks, we will ask them again if they are open to opening to other areas under modified enhanced community quarantine,” she said.
Meanwhile, Romulo-Puyat assured that DOT will strictly implement rules and regulations under its mandate to ensure safety for tourism industry players and tourists under the “new normal” brought by the pandemic.