“Tinglayan remains closed to tourists”-PLGU Kalinga

Tabuk City, Kalinga – The Provincial Government of Kalinga through its Information Services department is reiterating that tourism activities in Buscalan and other areas in the province are still prohibited.

The whole of Kalinga to date is under Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) banning tourism activities and other related services.

Accordingly, numerous inquiries on the re-opening of tourism in Buscalan has come to their attention, and that reports from the Office of the Provincial Administrator - Tourism Service revealed that a large number of tourists have shown interest to visit the sites in Kalinga and to be inked by the country’s oldest ‘mambabatok’, Apo Whang-od.

With this, the provincial government urged those travelers wanting to visit the province to be considerate enough and be responsible, as they also have to consider the safety and health security of the Buscalan community.

As for the tour packages offered online, the office said these are strictly prohibited.

‘Aside from endangering the health of the people in Buscalan and all nearby communities, these also violated the imposed local community guidelines,’ the advisory states.

Relative to this, the local government of Tinglayan has already warned individuals offering such packages online to remove their posts on social media sites, as these results in misinformation of the public.

If unable to heed the said warning, individuals involved will be held accountable.

‘In this pandemic, may we put the welfare of the majority first and put aside personal happiness to prevent the spread of the virus,’ the advisory concludes.

Meantime, in an interview with Larae Lactao of LGU Tinglayan, she said the reopening of the said sector is not yet possible this year but could be made possible in 2022 as preparatory measures are still underway.

The locals of Buscalan, she related, have been clamoring for the reopening, hoping to recover from losses they incurred because of the pandemic through tourism.

However, Tinglayan LGU, she said, is still doing necessary preparations to establish a mechanism that would control the possible influx of tourists, which could compromise the health security of the community.

“If it will be done drastically and without thorough preparations, it could put tourists as well as the community’s health security at risk,” she said.

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