Nancy wants tourism officers in PH's tourist spots

Senator Nancy Binay is pushing for an appointment of a tourism officer in major tourist destinations nationwide.

Binay, who introduced Senate Bill No. 1124, otherwise known as the Act Amending Sections 443, 454 and 463 of the Local Government Code of 1991, said the presence of tourism officer in major destinations would ensure sustainable tourism development in the area and boost tourism-related investments.

Binay noted that Republic Act 7160, otherwise known as the "Local Government Code of 1991" does not include permanent positions for tourism officers in its exclusive list of officers for every local government unit (LGU).

According to Binay, Section 42 of Republic Act 9593 or the Tourism Act of 2009, mandates every province, city or municipality where tourism is a significant industry to appoint a permanent tourism officer.

"Without a specific amendatory clause in The Tourism Act of 2009, the LGUs fail to establish permanent positions for tourism officers," Binay said, adding that the measure seeks to address the matter by amending pertinent provisions of RA 7160.

The senator underscored the contributions of the tourism industry in the country's economy.

Binay said the tourism industry yielded P2.2 trillion or 12.7 percent to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2018.

"These figures are still expected to rise and create a remarkable quantity of employment opportunities. Thus, it calls for the need to fortify the tourism safeguards provided by RA 9593," she said.

The bill has already been referred last Nov. 5 to the Senate committee on local government chaired by Sen. Francis "Tol" Tolentino.