Bohol lawmaker seeks removal of S-PASS requirement to enter province
Rep. Erico Aristotle Aumentado /Photo from House of Representatives
TAGBILARAN CITY––Rep. Erico Aristotle Aumentado of Bohol’s second district has urged Gov. Arthur Yap to remove the S-PASS or safe, swift, and smart passage app requirement in entering the province.
“Hopefully, the S-PASS requirement will be removed because it has caused trouble among those who can enter the island-province,” said Aumentado in a recorded video message he posted late Wednesday night on his Facebook page.
The S-PASS travel management system was developed by the Department of Science and Technology to ensure the health and safety of passengers traveling between provincial and regional borders, and prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Aumentado, who is running against Yap in the 2022 elections, said he just relayed the complaint he received from Boholano travelers who faced the ordeal of getting an S-PASS.
In the latest executive order of Yap, fully vaccinated persons, who want to enter Bohol, would need only three requirements: a vaccination card, government-issued identification card, and S-PASS instead of vaccination certificates and other travel requirements for vaccinated individuals.
Unvaccinated or partially unvaccinated individuals must present a negative swab test result taken 72 hours before departure, a government-issued ID, and an approved S-PASS.
On Oct. 30, several passengers bound for Bohol in Cebu City Port were unable to travel even though they had an S-PASS after their names were not in the master list when they purchased their tickets at Ocean Jet.
The S-PASS also depends on the availability of the focal person at the local governments who approves the application and sends it to the Bohol Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF) for endorsement to the border security authorities.
In a radio interview Wednesday, Anthony Damalerio, provincial disaster risk reduction, and management officer, said travelers could enter Bohol even if their S-PASS is pending approval.
He said the S-PASS certificate would be needed but only for purposes of registration so that the local government may continue to monitor arrivals of travelers in their respective jurisdictions.
