The Department of Tourism has designated comedy actor and TV host Willie Revillame as the country’s Celebrity Envoy…
The Department of Tourism has designated comedy actor and TV host Willie Revillame as the country’s Celebrity Envoy for Tourism in connection with itsGrand Pinoy Homecoming tour program.
The program, which will be launched in the United States and Canada, is part of the DOT’s intensified tourism campaign targeting the balikbayan market, particularly the second and third generations.
In a press conference held at the DOT, Tourism Secretary Ace Durano said that he had chosen Willie because of his personal advocacy to help his countrymen through his noontime show Wowowee, wherein the actor calls on Filipinos living abroad to come home and help in nation-building.
“Because of his advocacy, Willie and his show have gained recognition both here and abroad. Through his efforts many of our kababayan residing in other countries have come to see the beauty of their native land and extend help to their fellow Filipinos,” Durano said.
The Wowowee host for his part thanked the Department for making him a part of its family and giving him the chance to work for the benefit of the Filipino people. He also expressed support to the programs of the DOT, particularly those which will involve his participation.
“All I want is to make people happy as well as to be happy with what I am doing. My job in Wowowee is actually a combination of providing people with a lot of good laugh and extending public service to them. I am really thankful to Secretary Durano and the entire Department for choosing me to become the country’s tourism endorser. I promise to set a good example for the DOT,” Revillame enthused.
In latest statistics, the Balikbayan arrivals from January to October 2005 increased by 14.2 % compared to the same period in 2004. Durano said that with Willie’s involvement in the soon-to-be launched homecoming tour program, the DOT expects this growth rate to double this year.
Promotions for the Grand Pinoy Homecoming will focus on Filipino associations and universities where there are a good number of Filipino-American and Filipino-Canadian students. Their visit to the Philippines will include a tour of the country’s various destinations and an immersion in the Filipino culture through lectures and seminars to be given by experts from the National Commission on Culture and the Arts, National Historical Commission, and the National Museum.
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