Mt. Apo National Park, created in 1936 by Pres. Manuel Quezon, is a 72,000-hectare national patrimony straddling the provinces of North Cotabato and Davao del Sur and the city of Davao. Submission has been made to the UNESCO in 2006 for Mt. Apo's inclusion as a World Heritage Site due to Mt. Apo's outstanding biological diversity.
Since the advent of mountaineering in the Philippines, more and more people have trekked to the park in the hope of conquering Mt. Apo's peak. Of course, problems arose as irresponsible hikers themselves have taken more than just pictures and certainly left more than their footprints (to paraphrase the mountaineer's creed). This alarmed officials and rules were set up to be strictly implemented. There are permits, checkpoints and briefings needed before a group is allowed up the mountain.
Moreover, things become messier during the Holy Week as every entrance point to the mountain gets a jeepload or a busload of trekkers. If the trail in Kidapawan, Digos, Sta. Cruz, Bansalan and Davao all gets clogged-up with hikers, how do local officials expect the mountain to recover from all that onslaught of foot traffic? My point is, permits to Mt. Apo should be centralized so they can control the number of people up there. This is the system that works well in the Inca Trail in Peru: only 500 people per day are allowed, including porters and guides. The Peruvian government has even a website where trekkers can check availability
If a system can be in put in place for the benefit of all - and I mean the whole Philippines, then do it. Let's make Mt. Apo a National Park again. This Grandfather of Philippine mountains belong to all Filipinos after all - not just Kidapawan, Digos, Bansalan, Sta. Cruz or Davao - no matter what the boundary says.
Agree ako dyan. Sana gawin nilang mas-organized at hwag maging kanya-kanya sa pag-angkin ng Mt.Apo.
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