Mindanaotoday.com | Camiguin lifts travel restrictions, enforces QR use
By: Recthie Paculba | PIA-10
CAMIGUIN – Following the lifting of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s State of the Public Health Emergency, the provincial government here issued Executive Order No. 41, lifting the remaining rules and regulations on health protocols but still requiring the use of the CleanCamiguin QR system for visitors and locals.
“We have also lifted our remaining COVID-19 regulation: the requirement for unvaccinated visitors to present a negative antigen test result before entry to the province,” Gov. Xavier Jesus Romualdo said, adding that the EO takes effect, July 25, 2023.
Changes in the QR system will also be updated, July 31, 2023, so visitors no longer need to go to the visitor’s entry form on the CleanCamiguinQR website, where they were previously required to fill out the “schedule a visit” portion indicating the date that they are planning to visit the province.
The governor added that they have retained their QR system as they retool and transition it for the implementation of Smart Tourism in Camiguin and for the issuance of digital Camiguin resident identification cards.
Provincial Planning Officer Nykolsha Rayos said the QR system will no longer cause inconvenience to travelers since only necessary data for tourism will be collected from them.
Personnel from the provincial government assigned to seaports and airport will also be there to assist travelers in creating their QR code in case they haven’t done so yet.
She added that aside from complying with the requirements of the Department of Tourism (DOT)-10 to submit a monthly report on the arrivals of tourists along with their nationalities and other pertinent data, the QR system allows the province to observe its carrying capacity.
“An ordinance was made about the maximum number of people who can enter Camiguin in a given time, and such should be implemented in the province,” Rayos said, citing that doing so will help the province in protecting the environment and maintaining cleanliness.
Sharing her delight upon hearing the news, Michelle Seroy, a tourist from Iloilo City, said it is now easy to enter and leave the island.
Actually, it became easier because, unlike before, you have to present some requirements and, at the same time, you still have to process them, so it takes a long time before you can go out and come back to the province,” Seroy said.
To further ensure ease of travel and avoid delays, Rayos urges locals and tourists to truthfully provide needed information in the QR system, especially the traveler’s address. (RTP | PIA-10/Camiguin)
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