Tulfo confronts DOT Sec. Frasco over 'self-promotion' in tourism materials: 'Parang nagiging vlogger kayo'
Sen. Raffy Tulfo and Department of Tourism Sec. Christina Frasco exchanged words as the lawmaker called out the latter over "self-promotion" in tourism materials.
During the Senate Committee on Tourism hearing on Feb. 3, Tulfo called out Frasco over her appearance on the cover of a free magazine distributed in Japan and a tarpaulin bearing her image at the Boracay airport.
"Parang lumilitaw na ikaw ay nagiging vlogger na. It will not sell 'pag doon sa mga marketing materials natin, puro mukha mo ang nakalagay doon. It shouldn't happen," the lawmaker said, adding that materials should feature sceneries like the Tabon Cave instead of festivals.
In December 2025, the DOT came under fire when a photographer called out the agency for featuring Frasco on the cover of the magazine, Philippine Topics, in a now-deleted post.
Frasco claimed that the use of her image for the publication had "no consent, funding, or information" on her and the DOT's part.
"I did not pay for that magazine, no government funds were used for that magazine, and my consent was never obtained in the use of my image for that magazine," she said, later adding that she directed an immediate investigation following the publication.
When asked about a tarpaulin in Cebu that bore her photo, name, and title prominently, the Tourism Secretary said that the material was put up to welcome her for the inauguration of the project that she was unable to attend.
"I did not direct the putting up of that tarpaulin... Nonetheless, when this matter was brought to light, we actually ordered all of our regional offices, including Region 6, to take down any offending material [that] bears my image," she said.
'No national ambition'
The two then clashed as Tulfo questioned Frasco's being featured in past events instead of a prominent native or a beauty queen representative.
"So kasi ang nangyari ma'am eh ang dating daw sa kanila parang pinopromote mo yung sarili mo versus dapat yung Pilipinas [...] 'Yun po yung dating sa mga tao," the senator said.
Frasco answered that she has tried to be as present as possible in the country's destinations and said that she has no plans to run in the coming elections.
"I have no national ambition. I'm not running for any national position, and therefore any accusation of self-promotion would fall flat because I am not running for any national position in 2028, and therefore there would be no reason for me to promote myself," she said.
"Perhaps if it is the pleasure of the senator that I no longer visit our destinations or that there be no coverage of the same. We can take that into serious consideration," Frasco continued.
Tulfo responded that her presence is appreciated on the ground. "But what we're saying is, 'wag mo i-promote 'yung sarili mo. 'Pag pumunta ka sa isang lugar, kung ano 'yung mga kulang doon, punahin mo," he said.
Frasco, the daughter of former Cebu governor Gwendolyn Garcia, was appointed secretary of tourism in June 2022. Before that, she served as the mayor of Liloan, Cebu.
