Allaying fears Baguio is willing to risk the health of its residents to revive its tourism-based economy, Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong last week declared city doors will remain closed until the National Capital Region, Region III and Region IV stifles spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
The assurance came in the heels of a presentation on the Baguio Visitors Management System (BVMS) by City Tourism Officer Aloysius Mapalo.
This, as the city maps out strategies, if and when local tourism is given the greenlight, prospectively in September.
The mayor noted, almost 45-percent of tourists come from Regions 3, 4 and the country’s capital based on a survey, September 2018 to April 2019.
Most of the city’s visitors hail from Aurora Province, Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales in Region 3; Calamba in Laguna, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon in Region 4; and, part of Metro Manila.
Mapalo said the BVMS is essentially a tourist tracking system which aids in thwarting spread of COVID-19 right from the city’s boarders, while ensuring income derived from use of various city amenities; traffic administration; and, environment management.
It likewise renders a database for purposes of contact-tracing even before prospective visitors manage to roam the city under monitored conditions.
On the other hand, BVMS provides cashless transactions; scheduled travels and stops; ready and accredited transport services; and, ease of travel, among others, which provide tourists added sense of health security.
Meanwhile the City’s Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) toll reached 65 today with the addition of three fresh cases.
City Health Officer Dr. Rowena Galpo said the three new cases are a 9-year old girl from Middle Quezon Hill, a close contact of previous patients; a 46-year old female from Lualhati; and a 57-year old male from North Sanitary Camp.
Mayor Benjie Magalong will convene the Baguio City Inter-Agency Task Force this afternoon to address the surge in cases.
The public is reminded to stay vigilant in observing the health protocols by wearing their masks properly at all times, observing social distancing, avoiding crowded areas, closed spaces and close conversations and to limit travels outside homes to essential purposes. – PIO Baguio
