‘Police to sustain efforts to make Mindanao tourist-friendly’

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s police force will sustain efforts to make Mindanao a destination for tourists, according to the Department of Tourism (DOT).

During an event hosted by the DOT that promoted halal food in Mindanao, Philippine National Police (PNP) Special Operations Division acting chief Col. Crisaleo Tolentino said Executive Order No. 70 “and its implementation in Mindanao institutionalized the whole-of-nation approach in attaining sustainable peace in Mindanao.”

The presidential order issued in 2018 by then president Rodrigo Duterte created the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

Last September, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco was sworn in among Cabinet members joining the NTF-ELCAC who would be in charge of coordinating with the Cabinet the concerns of the agency’s local counterpart in Central Visayas region, to which her home province Cebu belongs.

Moving forward, Tolentino said the PNP would “sustain current efforts.”

He said that tourist police would be deployed in “identified areas with heavy tourist density,” as well as “increase the capability of tourist police units on scales and resources in partnership with the (DOT), strengthen partnerships with tourism stakeholders to improve their services and lastly conduct oversight activities to improve existing policies and strategies.”

During the event attended by diplomats, Frasco called on the public to “reconsider their perception of Mindanao” by “exploring this vibrant island.”