PHILIPPINE tourism secretary Alberto Lim has resigned, catching the industry by surprise as he had just delivered the opening address of the PhilippineMICE Conference 2011 (MICECon2011), being held in Cebu until August 13.
A statement released by Edwin Lacierda, presidential spokesperson, Presidential Communications Group, revealed that President Benigno Aquino III had actually accepted the resignation last Monday, but had delayed making the announcement to permit Lim to attend MICECon2011.
Lim cited he resigned for personal reasons, although industry members have been calling for him to step down. The resignation is effective August 31.
Lim’s tenure at the Philippines Department of Tourism (DoT) was hit by two major setbacks early on: the Hong Kong tour bus hostage situation in Manila in August 2010 (TTG Asia e-Daily, August 23, 2010), and a tourism slogan fiasco in November last year (TTG Asia e-Daily, November 24, 2010).
Several factions in the tourism industry also claimed lack of fair representation within the sector, especially in connection with Lim’s perceived bias towards foreign airlines because of his new open skies policy.
“I would like to spend more time with my family. My responsibilities require a great deal of travel and time away from my loved ones,” he said this morning at a press conference in Malacañang, the official residence and workplace of the Philippine president.
Lim’s departure puts a question mark on the Philippines’ tourism development and marketing plan.
In the last few days, the DoT was ready to present the final version of its National Tourism Development Plan for 2011-2016. A new tourism slogan was slated for release by early 2012, together with a full marketing campaign.
In a speech delivered during MICECon2011 yesterday, Lim discussed the potential of MICE business in boosting the country’s tourism arrivals, and had set a goal to place the Philippines in Asia-Pacific’s top 10 MICE destinations by 2016.
“We have to strive to be in the top 10 or at least two more ranks higher than our 2008 level, which is but realistic to become our priority goal as a tourism development and marketing strategy,” he had said.
