Fire Frasco as DOT chief

The fiasco or mess that was a result of an advertising agency contracted by the Department of Tourism has brought up questions about the capability of Tourism Secretary Cristina Garcia Frasco as DOT chief.

There are those calling for her resignation or for President Marcos Jr. firing her.

As far as I am concerned, when Frasco rebranded the slogan of the DOT to “Love the Philippines” it brought to fore the question that Frasco should ask herself what is there in the Philippines that tourists should love to advertise places that tourists should love coming to the Philippines – like seeing the perfect cone of the majestic Mayon Volcano, like Japan is known for its Mount Fuji.

There are also the well-known Boracay beaches known worldwide for the white sand and other attractions like the diving resorts of Siargao, and many other wonders that abound, centuries-old churches and heritage houses.

There are the rice terraces of Ifugao and the dwelling places of Igorots that tourists will surely love.

But, in advertising these will certainly cost money, and I wonder if Frasco ever considered these with the measly budget of the DOT.

It’s all for these reasons that it’s actually a blessing in disguise why Congress must look into the DOT fiasco and mess.

Rebranding the slogan of the DOT to entice tourists to come to the Philippines is a big order.

Did Frasco ever consider it, and that’s the reason she sought help from an advertising agency for P49 million.

There are now questions about the capability of Frasco to sell the country to make tourists love the Philippines.

What is actually the background of Frasco to become DOT chief, aside from being a mayor of Liloan in Cebu?

I ask this for the simple reason that a DOT secretary is basically a salesperson.

A DOT secretary must be able to sell a refrigerator to an Eskimo.

What I mean is a DOT secretary must know and be aware of all aspects of selling a product.

A slogan is not enough.

How to sell that slogan worldwide for tourists to come to the Philippines and love what they see all costs money.

Aside from an advertising agency showing footage of wonders of the country, if I may call them, all of these cost money.

No doubt, we have good products to sell and tourists must know what products they can love about the country.

For instance, a one-minute slot at CNN could cost millions, and all the posters and brochures that can advertise places that can make tourists love the Philippines could cost a lot more.

I wonder if Frasco realized these.

That fiasco and mess as a result of the stock footage shown by the advertising agency contracted by DOT obviously was not pre-screened and for that Frasco could be blamed for that mess.

Considering all these and for all these reasons, I realize that Frasco should not have been appointed by BBM as DOT secretary.

Yes, BBM has all his support for Frasco, but we need a better DOT chief. I am sure that BBM can find a better DOT chief.

The bottomline to all this is President Marcos Jr. should consider the background of people he appoints to office.

He now faces a problem in the case of Frasco. Obviously Frasco, the daughter of Gwedolyn Garcia, Cebu Governor, was a payback appointment.

Mafia-like cartel

I have long proposed that President Marcos Jr. should go after those that have been smuggling agricultural products, like sugar, rice, onions and other consumer goods like meat, poultry and fish.

These cartels not only manipulate prices, but hoard products that result in higher prices.

Agricultural producers know who they are, but it seems that nobody can stop them.

Santa Banana, the so-called “Onion Queen” has been identified, but I wonder why nothing has been done to stop her.

As I have been saying, the problem of the Department of Agriculture is the Mafia-like operation of a cartel that is also in connivance with corrupt members of Customs.

It’s for these reasons why it is so easy for smugglers to bring in agricultural products.

I covered Customs for many years, and I know there is no smuggler so stupid to smuggle anything through Customs without the connivance of corrupt Customs people.

There is also a gimmick resorted to by Customs personnel when smuggling is exposed.

Corrupt customs people sacrifice a bit of the smuggled goods and have it confiscated to show that Customs is also doing its duty.

As I said, these smugglers are in the know on how to go about it. But, the problem is that they are also in control of distribution.

But, Santa Banana, if only to show zero-tolerance to corruption, particularly smuggling of agricultural products, BBM must go after them, since they are hurting local farmers and producers.

If these smugglers are caught they should be convicted for economic sabotage and be jailed, with the keys thrown into the polluted Pasig River.

My gulay, there must be an end to agri-smuggling.

This is the biggest challenge that BBM must end as the continuing DA secretary.

Threat of El Nino

The onset of El Nino and the continuing dry spell is another challenge that President Marcos Jr. has to face.

And, Santa Banana, it will not end because it is a phenomenon that the whole world must face!

The continued diminishing level, for instance, of Angat Dam, the main supplier of Metro Manila’s drinking and potable water, is nothing new.

We in Metro Manila have gone through it before and we have been told there was a need for alternative sources since Angat Dam is also the source of irrigation water.

And we know that food crops and supply are dependent on water. This brings up the big question of what the government has done to meet this continuing threat.

Given El Nino, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewage System, the government regulator of the water concessionaires Maynilad and Manila Water, cannot just be the bearer of bad news that water supply cuts and allocation will continue.

My gulay, all through the years, Metro Manila residents have heard MWSS say, “Conserve water, don’t waste water and bear with rationing and allocated water because El Nino is here.”

This brings up the question, with the knowledge that El Nino and the dry spell, what has the government done if only to mitigate the dry spell that affects not only our lives but the nation’s food supply?

Knowing that El Nino can adversely affect food production and supply, the government should have at least mitigated the threat of food production and supply by now.

Take the case of rice production and supply, do not waste rice, and eat only what you can, we are told.

Yes, we must consume only the rice we can eat, and do not waste it.

But, Santa Banana, knowing these, it is the duty and obligation of the government to provide the means not to waste rice.