Dapitan drums up tourism package in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines — Driven by their ardent desire to showcase their rich history and cultural heritage while magnifying at the same time the life and works of the country's national hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal, officials of the City of Dapitan has connected with various stakeholders in Cebu for such a worthwhile endeavor.

During their weeklong tour of duty in the Queen City of the South recently, Dapitan Tourism Officer Apple Marie Agolong held a series of highly productive meetings with local officials and university administrators wherein they highlighted what the famed “Shrine City of the Philippines” can offer through their Unlimited Fun in Dapitan (UnliFuDap) and Visitamos Rizal tourism package.

“We lobbied to Mayor Michael Rama, to the vice mayor, city council and tourism officers to help us endorse Dapitan in their Lakbay Aral,” said Agolong, who was accompanied by Mark Lloyd Jamelo, the Executive Assistant to the Chairman of Glorious Fantasyland Complex and General Manager of Unlifudap. “This is not just a simple tour and visiting historical sites. The main purpose of this is to reignite the passion and interest of the Filipino people in Dr. Jose Rizal. It is an invitation to deeply know Rizal in Dapitan and encapsulate ourselves in the value of true patriotism."

   "The tour also challenges the students to live by the vision of Rizal as in this tour they will not merely be tourists, but they will also be apprentices who will develop a deeper understanding of their roles as present guardian's of the nation's heritage. It is an education expedition that instill a sense of pride, nationalism, and the love for service as Rizal did during his exile, in the hearts of the youth," Agolong furthered.

 With the assistance of local government units and universities, Agolong is hoping that this tourism package of great historical value will be incorporated in their cultural immersion program as part of “Lakbay Ara.l”

"Tapping Cebu to promote Dapitan is the best way to promote our city," Agolong said. “Cebu is on top in terms of heritage and putting tourism and heritage in their proper place. There is an in sync in Cebu. When Cebu City is being promoted, it cascades to neighboring areas and it is worthy of emulation.”

Agolong felt happy and extremely grateful that the local government units and university officials they visited welcomed the idea of drumming up Dapitan and most importantly advocating, preserving, and upholding Rizal's legacy.

“They welcomed it. They are sold out to the idea to reintroduce Rizal. I talked with Mayor Rama and I told him that what we are asking is to recommend Dapitan to the universities,” said Agolong.

For his part, Jamelo said their trip was a demonstration of the power of collaboration between the private sector and the local government and its agencies in driving meaningful projects fostering a sense of national pride.

“On behalf of our chairman, Mr. Romeo Jalojos, Sr., we want to express our sincerest appreciation to the City of Cebu, to Mayor Mike Rama and the members of the City Council, to the City Tourism Commission officer, Mr. Niel Odchigue, and to the tourism office of the Province of Cebu for giving us the time to present the legacy project of our chairman - The Visitamos Rizal,” said Jamelo.

"The passion and commitment of the people we visited, from the local government to the deans and university heads of Cebu, were very evident in every interaction which inspires us to keep moving with our efforts to spreading awareness and promoting the values exemplified by our national hero particularly the legacy he left in Dapitan City," Jamelo ended. (CEBU NEWS)