Mayon Volcano in Albay has been very prominent in the headlines during the past few weeks because of its restive state. Congressman Joey Salceda of the province's second district just wished that Mayon was as prominent in the Department of Tourism's (DOT) new promotional video for the country. But as things turned out, Mayon was snubbed and this rubbed the outspoken Salceda the wrong way. In a statement Wednesday afternoon, June 28, Salceda expressed his disappointment over how Mayon had supposedly been mistreated by the DOT. "I remain disappointed in my friend, [DOT] Secretary [Christina] Frasco, for the exclusion of Mayon Volcano in the new official tourism video of the Philippines," he said. "I am more disappointed in the response that I should not bring this issue up because, anyway, Mayon is included in the 50 major volcanoes and mountains represented (by a pixel!) in the official tourism logo and slogan," Salceda said. "Secretary Frasco, ask all your predecessors in the DOT. Mayon deserved better treatment. You failed Albay -- but this can be rectified," the former three-term Albay governor further said. Earlier Wednesday, Salceda--after he had watched the "Love the Philippines" promotional video "20 times" and saw no sign of Mayon--asked Secretary Frasco on Facebook why the volcano was excluded from the campaign. "No love for Albay, no love for Bicol. Thank you na lang. Albay tourism will thrive without you, LOVE ALBAY!" Salceda wrote, obviously upset. Secretary Frasco's husband---House Deputy Speaker Cebu 5th district Rep. Vincent Franco "Duke" Frasco--would later post on his social media: "Dear Cong Salceda, if you look closely, the over notable 50 mountains and volcanos of the Philippines are represented in the DOT LOVE logo. As well as whalesharks & surfs of the PH. Let's CELEBRATE, not hate! LOVE the Philippines!" To this, Salceda responded: "Mayon deserves better than a pixel in the logo where you need strained eyes to see it. Mayon has been a national symbol and a national treasure (one of only three UNESCO-declared biosphere reserves in the country)." Salceda, chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means--went on to explain why he reacted that way to Mayon Volcano's lack of coverage in the county's new promotional video. "I express this frustration because tourism is disproportionately more crucial in Albay, and Bicol at large. This is how thousands of Albayano families make a living," he said. "It would not have cost much to include just a scene of Mayon, but it would have meant the world to Albay families relying on tourism for their bread and butter," he underscored. The Bicolano notes that, per capita, Albay is one of the country's most important tourist destinations. "Pre-pandemic, it attracted 1.32 tourists per resident, when the top region, Central Visayas, attracts just 1.17, and the national average being 0.55," he said. He said that Bicol's economy depends heavily on tourism, "moreso than the rest of the country". "Just to demonstrate how affirmative support from the national government can be a gamechanger for tourism: When I was governor of Albay, we increased foreign tourist arrivals from 8,700 in 2006 to 374,000 in 2015. Total tourist arrivals swelled from 123,000 to 1.4 million over the same period," Salceda said. "We credit this partly to how we were proportionately featured in promotional material over the same period by the national government," he added.
Source: Manila Bulletin (https://mb.com.ph/2023/6/28/you-failed-albay-why-is-salceda-so-upset-with-dot-s-promotional-video)
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