Inspection of tourism roads in Western Visayas called off

ILOILO CITY—The Department of Tourism (DOT) has suspended the inspection of proposed tourism road projects in Western Visayas region following recent clashes between government troops and communist rebels.

But Helen Catalbas, DOT regional director, assured that tourist sites and destinations in several provinces remained safe for tourists.

“It’s a  move to protect and ensure the safety of our staff and those  involved in the projects,” Catalbas told reporters here on Wednesday.

“The inspections are in areas that are not yet [developed as] tourist sites. We are still evaluating proposals from local chief executives and congressmen,” she said.

Of the 152 proposed tourism road projects in the region, 63 have yet to be inspected. These projects cost about P10.6 billion.

Catalbas said her office also suspended the monitoring of tourism projects in remote areas due to safety and security concerns.

The DOT, she said, would issue advisories if some travel destinations would be classified as dangerous for tourists after an assessment of the military and other government agencies.

 Ambush

More government troops have been sent to the boundary of Capiz and Iloilo provinces in central Panay following Tuesday’s ambush staged by the New People’s Army that left a soldier dead and two others wounded.

The NPA’s Jose Percival Estocada Command, in a statement, claimed responsibility for the ambush in Tapaz town in Capiz.

Lt. Col Ericson Rosana, spokesperson of the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division, said the rebels could be the same group that clashed with government troops in Lambunao town in Iloilo last week.

Clashes were also reported in San Remigio town in Antique and Tubungan town in Iloilo last week.

“We have enough troops and the situation is under control,” Rosana said. —NESTOR P. BURGOS JR.