BORACAY ISLAND, Aklan — Swimming in Boracay beaches will be prohibited during its six months closure and only residents of its three barangays will be allowed to enter the island, said OIC Interior Secretary Eduardo Año here on Friday.
Año told the media that even residents of Boracay will be prohibited from swimming during the rehabilitation stage to “allow nature to heal.”
He said violators will be apprehended.
Entry to the island will be limited to residents of Barangays Manocmanoc, Balabag and Yapak, the three barangays in Boracay.
Local and foreign tourists will be prohibited from stepping on the tourist island beginning April 26 to give way for its rehabilitation programs, said Año.
A common identification card will be given to legitimate residents of the island upon its closure as a means of controlling the entry of people, he added.
The new ID will be issued by the Local Government Unit of Malay and the security forces.
Meantime, the barangay ID issued to the residents of the three barangays of Boracay can be used. An estimated 56,000 people are living in the three barangays.
The DILG will also meet with the officials of the three Boracay villages to discuss the ID system.
An inventory on the baseline of the population in the three barangays will also be conducted, said Año, who arrived here on Friday.
The April 26 shutdown of the world’s famous white beach was ordered by President Rodrigo R. Duterte after he called the island as a “cesspool” last February. (PNA)
