Initorio bares Mt. Samat FTEZ 5-year infra program during Usec. Enrile’s visit

PILAR, Bataan – Department of Tourism Undersecretary for Legal and Special Concerns and Chief of Staff, Atty. Edwin Enrile visited the Mt. Samat shrine in Pilar, yesterday, May 21.
During this brief visit, he met with Mt. Samat Flagship Tourism Enterprise Zone (FTEZ) Administrator Francis Theodore Initorio to discuss the 5-year infrastructure development program which covers the renovation of the view deck – exhibit area, beautification of underground museum, improving and adding toilet facilities, a ticketing booth at the entrance gate, cable car stations and the construction of an elevated walking trail.
Initorio said the shrine has gained 300 thousand visitors in 2018 based on data provided by the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office (PVAO), but he believes it will reach 500 thousand visitors once people see the improvements in the facilities.
Their recent achievement was the lighting of the cross during Araw ng Kagitingan, but part of their future plans is to add more lights so the cross could be seen across Manila bay.
It would be recalled that in 2017, Mt. Samat Shrine of Valor was officially designated as the second flagship tourism enterprise in Luzon of the Tourism Infrastructure Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA). The FTEZ program is a joint initiative of Department of Tourism (DOT) and TIEZA to promote sustainable development of tourist spots such as cultural and heritage sites in the Philippines.