Oozing with superlatives, two Cabinet secretaries who blew into town Thursday, heaped lavish praises to Bohol’s thrusts in trade and tourism saying the province was in the right path as its programs are aligned with that of the national agenda of the Aquino Administration. Secretaries Gregory Domingo of the department of trade and Industry and Alberto Lim of the department of tourism were the principal guests during the two-day Bohol Tourism Summit at the Bohol Tropics Resort Club Dagohoy Ballrooom. Upon invitation of Gov. Edgar Chatto, the top Aquino officials attended the summit, the first of its kind hereabouts, to give full support to Bohol’s successful campaign to have the first-ever LGU-led gathering. In a recent Provincial Development Council meeting, Gov. Chatto said “Bohol is in the right direction,” in reference to the strides the province has achieved in terms of tourism development.

The same optimism was repeated by the governor during the power-packed audience attending the tourism summit in the Philippines, a first in the history of Philippine tourism. The governor was emphatic in his confidence of making it big-time tourismwise adding that Pres. P-Noy’s catchy slogan, “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap” (without corruption, there’d be no poverty), was no doubt aligned with the Chatto-Lim Administration’s HEAT Bohol and LIFE HELPS strategies where tourism, agriculture, health, education and technology are the major thrusts. This way, everyone gets to participate in the growth process and hence shares in the benefits of economic growth which is very parallel to the “inclusive growth” concept of the Aquino Administration and its five-point agenda, he added. Chatto believes that “the best way to reach the poor is to work with them directly” and the thrust of job creation of the P-Noy Administration is directly parallel with that of the HEAT criteria in making sure that programs, whether national or local, are cascaded down even to hinter barangays.

Bohol’s overarching mission of development to enrich Bohol’s social, economic, cultural, political and environmental resources through good governance and effective partnerships with stakeholders for increased global competitiveness can be clearly seen in the continuing and tireless efforts of Gov. Chatto, Vice-Gov. Concepcion Lim and the Sangguniang Panlalawigan members. These provincial officials leave no stone unturned in delving well beyond the surface of both Bohol and the Boholano’s potential in seeking what is best for Bohol and what they can do to alleviate Bohol’s standing in the most competitive and cut-throat, albeit productive, competition of emerging from the ashes of defeat of the past in order to reach greater heights, globally. The Chatto-Lim Administration wants to assuage, if not totally eliminate, the pains of failure that plagued the province in the past by setting a most concrete example by being one with the people in opening the doorway to progress by eliminating the “culture of dependence” by instead being the leader of the entire country through its Dynamic Learning Program and maintaining its “crown” of being the first insurgent-free province in the country and the rice granary in Central Visayas; and, soaring to the top as the future anchor destination in the Philippines in the field of tourism.

Chatto’s conviction that “every reform must have an impact as an offshoot of a project” can be clearly seen in his resolve to find solutions to the problems that have cropped up as consequences of progress by urging everybody to diminutively dissect them to better understand its most miniscule of parts and hence come up with the most viable and doable of solutions as he had always been doing so that progress and development are better felt and used productively. The provincial government’s noble vision of putting up more hospitals for the sick, a retirement village for the elderly, complete with integrated facilities on nursing and care-giving coupled with security and a comfortable lifestyle while also inviting multi-million investors to provide campsites, convention centers and even golf courses, would not only take care of our people but also provide them better employment opportunities and more comfortable living conditions. After seeing with his own eyes what Gov. Chatto has done and is doing for Bohol and its people, Sec. Greg Domingo of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) bluntly told the Boholanos during the Bohol Tourism Summit: “You very lucky to have Gov. Chatto as your governor; for with him, Bohol is in very good hands.” (jlv/EDCom)