2018 Boracay closure and redevelopment for media coverage. On April 4, 2018, the Philippine government announced that Boracay would be closed for up to six months starting on April 26. Checkpoints manned by police officers and soldiers would be set up at piers in Boracay to turn away visitors from the island. Passes would be given to local residents. On the day of the closure, President Rodrigo Duterte declared a state of calamity over the three barangays of Boracay. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has distributed relief goods to residents of Boracay while the island is closed to tourists. In June 2018,
Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte policies and alleged incompetence. In April 4, Duterte announced that the government shall 'close down' all operations within the island of Boracay, the country's number one tourism destination, due to 'environmental concerns'. In April 10, Duterte admitted that the government has 'no master plan' in how to clean-up Boracay, which he called a 'cesspool'. In April 24, more than 600 military personnel were deployed by Duterte in Boracay, confusing the natives on the government's initial environmental wordings. In April 26, Boracay's 6-month closure began, and entire island was officially closed to the public. Duterte advocates federalism as a better system