February 24, 2021 ISLAND-HOPPING within the Island Garden City of Samal (Igacos) will still be prohibited once tourism operations within the island resume on March 1, 2021.
Igacos Tourism Officer Jennifer Dagohoy Cariaga said in a radio interview on Wednesday, February 24, that island-hopping, one of the main tourism activities on the island, is still not allowed.
Cariaga did not further elaborate on the reason why the local government had temporarily suspended island-hopping activities.
The prohibition of island-hopping had been an existing guideline on the island prior to the suspension of Samal s tourism activities on December 18, 2020.
In a previous report, island-hopping was suspended to regulate the movement of the public as a mitigating measure against Covid-19.
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File photo by RJ Lumawag
+ February 15, 2021 ISLAND Garden City of Samal (Igacos) Mayor Al David Uy has sent an appeal to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG)-Davao to gradually allow the city to reopen the entire tourism industry.
The tourism industry is among the primary growth drivers of the island.
The industry has been suffering following the implementation of movement restrictions due to the ongoing threats of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
DILG-Davao Director Alex Roldan said in a radio interview on Monday, February 15, that Igacos s appeal has already been forwarded to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) and they are waiting for a response.