by Donald Sevilla
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED
The brouhaha over our latest tourism ad campaign video to promote a vital sector of our economy just shows the way we approach things without serious thought and reflection. Such inexcusable oversight could have been prevented if a simple review was conducted before airing it.
Nevertheless damage has been done as first impressions tend to create a lasting effect. While the DOT has strongly condemned the fiasco, this only shows how, time and again, our bureaucracy has failed to learn lessons from past mistakes.
In the eyes of the whole world we have made a laughing stock of ourselves. For how could we sell our house when what we are promoting are pictures of those of our neighbor’s? If we even manage to do so, we could easily be accused of gross dishonesty for misrepresenting ourselves.
The Tourism Secretary may be new in the job but she has tried her best to live up to her mandate, coming off to an enthusiastic start. But it seems her minions at the DOT who have weathered many bosses before her have been complacent at their jobs.
With millions of funds at their disposal, one can only wonder why such oversight happened? While no government funds may have been wasted as the department emphasized, as no disbursements to the winning bidder have yet been made, we still do wonder.
Many want to point their fingers to lay blame, but with millions of pesos involved in this undertaking there are many circumstances to look into. Speculations may be ripe to smell a whiff of graft but what more can we expect?
Are we not surprised? Tourism may provide a much-needed boost to our post-pandemic economic recovery but the way we’ve handled things thus far, it has become an international embarrassment for us.
Those responsible for this faux pas should own up to it and hold accountability. What happens next is something we should all be watching.
Can mistakes like this be swept under the rug and conveniently forgotten? Or should we be more firm and demand accountability no matter where the chips may fall?
What just happened is not unique to the Department of Tourism but reflects upon the sad state of our government bureaucracy and our mindsets.
If we must move forward and aim to succeed in this competitive world, we must learn to shape up. Let us always remember that tourism is not and cannot be a monopoly. There are others equally endowed as well. It just depends on how we manage it and sell ourselves.
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