The Department of Tourism’s new campaign slogan and logo
The government’s fresh push to promote tourism received support on Friday from an opposition House member from Albay after pro-administration Rep. Joey Salceda, also of Albay, criticized Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco for not featuring the iconic Mayon Volcano in its new slogan, logo, and video.
The “Love the Philippines” campaign of the Department of Tourism (DOT) is replacing the 12-year-old “It’s more fun in the Philippines” introduced by the late former President Benigno Aquino III.
READ: New tourism campaign, logo irk Albay lawmaker
Opposition Rep. Edcel Lagman of the first district of Albay took the side of Frasco following recent tirades from Salceda, who is from the second district, home of Mayon—the Bicol region’s top tourist attraction.
He said Salceda’s “purported disenchantment” over the DOT’s supposed “low priority” given to Mayon as a tourist attraction was a “parochial view” and “essentially political soundbite.”
“I am fully supportive of your reinvigorated program to best promote and sustain Philippine tourism,” Lagman said in a letter to Frasco.
An interactive map accessible on the DOT website gives prominence to Mayon as the top tourist attraction in Bicol.
Lagman said the best argument against Salceda’s criticism was Frasco’s “resolve” to address the lack of potable water at Mayon Tourism Complex, including the newly renovated Mayon Skyline Hotel.
Sought for comment on Lagman’s letter to Frasco, Salceda said: “No apologies for standing up for Albay—the people I represent. Thank you.”
He had hinted that the new tourism campaign might meet funding problems when the DOT budget comes up for discussion in the House.
In his letter, Lagman also cited the annual appropriation for the improvement and maintenance of the Mayon Parks Road leading to the tourism complex.
Improving facilities
According to other lawmakers, trying to draw foreign tourists into the country will entail more than changing the government’s slogan, and should start with addressing the problems faced by tourists at the country’s airports.
“Catchy tourism slogans must not be thwarted by cringeworthy travelers’ experience. We must start by improving services at our airports, which are not only the nation’s gateway but also the first and last impression a tourist gets of the Philippines,” said Sen. Grace Poe, chair of the Senate committee on public services.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri on Thursday urged the government agencies to work together in fixing the country’s tourism infrastructure.
“Slogans have nothing to do with the image—the image will improve if the services and facilities improve. It’s really about the experience,” he said.
Expensive
Sen. Nancy Binay, chair of the Senate committee on tourism, questioned the timing of the launch of the new DOT campaign.
“Changing a slogan always carries with it expenses and it would entail a huge amount of US dollars to start and sustain a new campaign. With the amount of expenses that we need to prioritize, we don’t have sufficient funds to finance a rebrand,” she said.
House Deputy Speaker and Batangas Rep. Ralph Recto also welcomed the new DOT slogan but was worried about the state of the country’s airports and other infrastructure.
Congested airport
“The advantage of a catchy and clever tourism brand instantly evaporates in the heat of a congested airport, in road traffic which does not move, in restrooms which cannot be found. These are harsh realities no hot advertising copy can cure,” he said.
Recently, six of the country’s top conglomerates teamed up with US-based Global Infrastructure Partners to form the Manila International Airport Consortium. They submitted a P267-billion unsolicited proposal to rehabilitate Ninoy Aquino International Airport over 25 years.
The local conglomerates are Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc., AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corp., Alliance Global Infracorp Development Inc., Filinvest Development Corp., and JG Summit Infrastructure Holdings Corp.
About P210 billion of the proposed amount is to be allocated for capital investments in airfield and runway upgrades, terminal expansion, new cargo facilities, and taxiway extensions. The remaining P57 billion is for the upfront concession payment to the government.