Frasco to take leave; DOT clarifies she filed leaves before ‘Love’ rebranding

MANILA, Philippines — Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco is set to take a “short leave” of absence starting July 13 amid the controversies surrounding the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) newest “Love the Philippines” campaign.

However, the DOT Office of Public Affairs and Advocacy on Tuesday clarified that Frasco filed her leave application on May 9 — which was approved by the Office of the President on May 23 —  well before the agency began its rebranding campaign.

“The purpose of the short leave beginning July 13 to 21 consisting of only 7 working days, is to spend time with her young family,” the DOT said.

“She is confirmed to attend the Sona (State of the Nation Address). Any insinuation to the contrary is false,” it added.

While Frasco is on leave, DOT said that Undersecretary Elaine Bathan will step in as the agency’s officer-in-charge.

The DOT has been controversial after it released the brand new “Love the Philippines” campaign, which sparked public outrage and even made international headlines after its first promotional video contained clips from Thailand, Indonesia, and the United Arab Emirates.

The DOT has since terminated its contract with its partner advertising firm DDB Philippines, who, in turn, claimed that the said video DOT uploaded online was merely a “mood video” meant “to excite internal stakeholders.”

The controversy, however, didn’t stop there as the agency also drew flak for featuring alleged sex trafficker Apollo Quiboloy on their Facebook page when the DOT thanked various tourism pages who expressed support for its new slogan.

Despite the issues, Frasco, in an event on July 5, said that the country would continue to use the “Love the Philippines” slogan, despite backlash from the public and some lawmakers.

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je/abc