Duterte signs proclamation placing Boracay under state of calamity

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 25) — President Rodrigo Duterte signed on Thursday a proclamation placing three barangays in Boracay Island under a state of calamity for a year.

Proclamation No. 475 placed barangays of Balabag, Manoc-Manoc, and Yapak in the Municipality of Malay, Aklan under state of calamity, formalizing the island's six-month closure.

"All departments, agencies, and offices, including government-owned or controlled corporations and affected local government units are hereby declared to implement and execute the...closure and the appropriate rehabilitation works, in accordance with pertinent operational plans and directives, including the Boracay Action Plan," stated the document.

It was signed hours after Boracay was closed to tourists as the government began rehabilitation work.

"It was issued, in a way, delayed," Interior Officer-In-Charge Eduardo Año said in a media briefing in Boracay.

Related: Government temporarily closes Boracay

The proclamation cited three sections in the Constitution on the government's mandate to protect the health of the people, promote a healthful ecology, and take care of the nation's marine wealth.

Republic Act 9275, which requires the Environment department to act on problems of pollution and water quality, was also mentioned.

It also referenced the investigation by the inter-agency task force, composed of the Environment, Interior, and Tourism departments, which revealed problems and violations to Boracay's environmental and health laws.

The move would help fast track procurement of supplies, especially for the island's drainage system. It would also pave the way for the release of the P2 billion calamity fund to assist over 30,000 displaced workers.