Tulum’s Rescue Plan: Unity Amid Crisis

TULUM, Mexico — Councilman Jorge Alberto Portilla Mánica has issued a call for unity among all levels of government, hoteliers, tourism service providers, taxi drivers, and the general population to "rescue Tulum." He compared the necessary effort to the national response following the 1985 earthquake in Mexico City, where the entire country and even foreigners participated in the rebuilding.

Portilla Mánica made these statements while discussing the "bad streak" that Tulum is experiencing, a situation that has become an international topic. "I will not tell you that everything is perfect, but we need to unite to combat the factors that have led to this downturn," he said.

Proposed Solutions for Recovery

Among the solutions the councilman proposes are seeking alternatives for tourism that go beyond sun, sand, and beach to include cultural activities; increased oversight by the Municipal Executive to prevent public servants from negatively affecting the population; and ensuring that Citizen Security, through the Transit Directorate, does not extort visitors.

"For me, citizen participation is important; we must create real citizen committees, Citizen Security committees, as well as a citizen oversight body, outside of the public administration; it is the only way to be transparent," he emphasized.

Addressing a "Smear Campaign" and Acknowledging Errors

A resident of Tulum since 1972 when he arrived with his parents, Portilla Mánica explained that beyond a simple bad streak, there is a "media-driven smear campaign against our beloved municipality of Tulum." He added, "We must recognize that there have been mistakes, that we must take care of and rectify them; we must seek a better service area."

The councilman justified that the atypical arrival of sargassum in June and July affected Tulum's beaches. Despite this, there was a good tourist influx, though not comparable to previous years. "It dropped, though we are not at zero; that is why we are feeling the downturn now," he stated.

He concluded by saying that all criticisms and complaints from both visitors and residents of the Municipality must be taken into account for the purpose of improvement.