The administration ordered the closure of Boracay to prioritize its environmental clean-up, but reports revealed that construction activities have resulted in one of its mountains flattening and forest clearing.
According to the reports of Inquirer and ABS-CBN, residents in Barangay Yapak noticed that the number of trees in the area halved as the mountain area was leveled.
Both reports, respecting the anonymity of its sources, claimed that residents of the island said that these construction activities have been ongoing even before the closure of Boracay on April 26.
This situation is in contrast to Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)’s statement that construction activities in the tourist spot would be suspended during the six-month closure. Only minor renovations of existing buildings and structures are exceptions.
In ABS-CBN’s report, a tricycle driver who wished to not be identified alleged that a politician owned the mountain area and may be used for a swimming pool and other amenities.
Inquirer also reported that it asked Richard Favila, head of the Community Environment and Natural Resources in Boracay, but he refused to give details aside from they are investigating the said reports.
Reports further said that the patch is visible even from a distance.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte earlier ordered the closure of Boracay because of its sewerage and environmental problems.
“I will close Boracay. Boracay is a cesspool,” Duterte said in a speech in February.
He added, “But you go into the water, it’s smelly. Smell of what? Sh*t. Kasi lahat doon ang palabas nila sa Boracay (because everything there ended up with)… it’s destroying the environment or the Republic of the Philippines and creating a disaster coming.”
The following month, Duterte then threatened local officials and business owners on the paradise island, saying that he will order their arrest if they refuse to cooperate with his rehabilitation plans, adding that they are the ones responsible for the environmental damage of Boracay.