MANDAUE CITY, Cebu – Cordova Mayor Teche Sitoy-Cho has ordered the regulation visits in at least two tourism sites in her town to prohibit the gathering of a large crowd in these areas.
Vendors selling at the town’s Centennial Road will already be relocated to a vacant area that is located at the far end of the road while they cater to takeout orders only, said an advisory that was posted on the official Facebook page of the Municipality of Cordova late night on Monday, September 14.
Sitoy-Cho also wanted stricter regulations implemented among visitors of the Bakwahan Paradise, a tourism destination that is located about 20 minutes away from the mainland in Barangay Buagsong, the advisory added.
She asked barangay captains to monitor all jumpoff areas when going to the Bakhawan Paradise and ensure compliance with health protocols required by the Department of Health.
Felix Pacaldo, the town’s marine watch head, has also been instructed to deploy personnel to monitor tourism activities there.
Sitoy-Cho met with members of the town’s Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Monday to discuss concerns on the crowding of tourism sites in their town.
On the same day, they passed a resolution to prohibit dine-in among food stalls that are located along the Cordova Centennial Road to reduce the volume of local tourists who are crowding the area.
“A lot were not observing the health protocols,” the mayor said in reaction to photos that were taken in the area and have circulated on social media.
Sitoy-Cho said that the Cebu Provincial Tourism Task Force has also called her attention to the matter.
“I was advised to close the centennial road but I decided not to because the reason why I allowed to let the food stall vendors to operate in the first place is for them to make a living after several months they cease to operate during the ECQ period,” said Sitoy-Cho.
To further regulate the movement of people in the area, the municipal government has decided to relocate the food stalls from the sidewalks to a vacant lot that is located at the far end of the Centennial Road.
Once completed, parking on the sidewalks will no longer be allowed and will be meted with appropriate sanctions.
Photos below are courtesy of the Municipality of Cordova:
