This area in Barangay Pangan-an on Olango Island has been dubbed as ‘Little Maldives’. Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard ‘Ahong’ Chan said the city government is now preparing plans to revive the city’s tourism industry, and encouraged Cebuanos to support local tourism post-coronavirus pandemic. | Photo courtesy of Mayor Junard Ahong Chan
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Cebu’s tourism players are now more upbeat of the industry’s recovery following Liloan Mayor Ma. Christina Frasco’s appointment as the country’s Tourism Secretary.
Stakeholders here welcomed Frasco’s decision to accept the offer to lead the Department of Tourism (DOT) under the administration of incoming President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr.
“Incoming DOT Secretary, Mayor Christina Garcia Frasco! We are very happy,” said Shalimar Hofer Tamano, director of DOT in Central Visayas, on social media.
Alfred Reyes, President of the Hotel Resort and Restaurant Association in Cebu (HRRAC), also shared the same sentiments with Tamano.
“It’s a very good news for Cebu. In fact, saying it’s a good news for Cebu is an understatement. We’re truly happy that we can now really say Cebu will be represented in the Cabinet,” Reyes said in a phone interview with CDN Digital.
With this development, Reyes expressed optimism that the island province’s tourism industry will get a boost in its recovery phase.
“We can finally put Cebu back on the Philippine map… Cebu is a destination that we should be proud of, and it’s truly an honor to have someone from Cebu to represent in the national scene,” he added.
On Monday, May 30, Marcos Jr.’s press secretary, lawyer Trixie Cruz-Angeles, announced that Frasco and four other personalities accepted the offer to be part of the new administration’s Cabinet.
Aside from Frasco, other incoming Cabinet officials included broadcaster Erwin Tulfo for the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD); Amenah Pangandaman for the Department of Budget and Management (DBM); Ivan John Enrile Uy for the Department of Information and Communications (DICT); and Naida Angping for Presidential Management Staff.
Frasco recently won her bid to be reelected as Liloan’s mayor. She is set to enter her third and last term in office this June 30.
She also currently serves as the spokesperson of incoming Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio.
Frasco and her husband, reelected Cebu 5th District Rep. Vincent ‘Duke’ Frasco, were among the local officials in Cebu who actively and vocally campaigned for the UniTeam tandem of Marcos Jr. and Duterte-Carpio during the May 2022 National and Local Elections.
Cebu, the country’s vote-rich province, delivered 1.5 million votes for Marcos and 1.7 million votes for Duterte-Carpio.
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