BY BOY RYAN ZABAL and PRINCE GOLEZ
BORACAY – The closure of this island was sudden and the local government of Malay, Aklan was not able to amply prepare, according to Mayor Ciceron Cawaling during a Senate hearing yesterday.
“Magulo po tayo dahil wala tayong plano bago nag-close ang Boracay,” said Cawaling in the hearing that Sen. Nancy Binay, chairwoman of the Committee on Tourism, called on to tackle Senate Resolution No. 705.
The resolution – authored by Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV – aims to look into the national government’s master plan for Boracay, which involves the island rehabilitation, relocation of displaced residents and livelihood plans for closure-affected workers.
“Biglaan ang nangyari sa Boracay. Marami ang naapektuhan dahil sa closure. Sa sinasabing nabigyan nila ng tulong, hindi lahat – lalo na sa mainland Malay,” Cawaling stressed.
He added that the municipal government stood to lose about P380 million worth of business taxes when Boracay was closed off to tourists beginning April 26.
“Sa ngayon, hirap na hirap na kami. Sa mainland walang halos trabaho at ang mga estudyante natin hindi na nakapag-enroll,” the mayor said.
He added, “Kung nabigyan ng P1 billion ang Boracay sa nakolektang P56-billion tourism receipts at idinaan ito sa local government, solved na sana ang problema namin.”
For his part, Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV urged the government to ensure that the displaced workers receive immediate and necessary assistance.
“Hindi ibig sabihin na wala na iyong mga displaced workers sa Boracay ay hindi mo na sila tutulungan,” said Aquino, referring to workers who went home to their respective provinces.
He added that the government was to blame why some workers were forced to leave the island and look for other jobs.
“Noong sinara ang Boracay, we owe it to the people na ‘yung kanilang pangangailangan ay mai-match sa binibigay ng gobyerno,” said Aquino, adding that the island shutdown “was really rushed.”
During the hearing, the Department of Labor and Employment said a total of 26,000 workers were displaced when Boracay shut down.
Cawaling, on the other hand, said there were about 37,000 formal and informal workers who were affected./PN
