Face card declined? Frasco’s image found in other government materials, too

CEBU, Philippines – When one uses the internet adage “face card never declines,” it’s when another person looks so beautiful, they use their face like a credit card to get through life.

One can say things had not gone well for Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco in this regard.

More than two years after the controversies surrounding the launch of “Love the Philippines,” Filipinos criticized the Frasco for having her photos prominently featured in campaigns promoting the Philippines as a tourist destination. 

Things came to a head when the Senate tourism committee summoned Frasco to a hearing on this issue on Tuesday, February 3. Senator Raffy Tulfo called her out for what he called excessive self-promotion.

The tourism secretary defended herself, saying her face appears often on DOT materials because it shows her doing her job. Still, a day after, Frasco ordered the removal of her photos in tourism-related materials.

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Face card activated

But it turns out that Frasco’s face had been featured not just in DOT campaigns.

Veteran Cebu journalist Leo Lastimosa reported on a senior citizen’s ID from Frasco’s term as Liloan mayor from 2016 to 2022 — which included her full-body photo.

“Her photo on the ID was even bigger than that of the senior citizen,” Lastimosa reported in Cebuano. “It had gotten pharmacists confused on who actually is the owner of the ID. Such audacity.”

Screenshot from Leo Lastimosa’s Facebook page

Lokalpedia founder John Sherwin Felix also posted photos bearing the watermark of the DOT’s Office of Public Affairs and Advocacy. The photos showed a Valentine’s Day event in 2025, where gifts bearing photos of Frasco and her husband, Cebu 5th District Representative Duke Frasco, were distributed.

A Google Images search of the photos led to a link to a DOT post on Facebook, which is unavailable as of writing.

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A photo of Frasco with Singapore Minister of State for Trade and Industry Alvin Tan during the 2023 Association of Southeast Asian Nations Tourism Forum also resurfaced on viral social media posts. She was seen handing out boxes of rosquillos — Liloan’s famous delicacy — plastered with side-by-side images of her and Duke. 

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Poking fun at the situation, Filipinos decided to put Frasco’s image in other materials, too — from a fake Professional Regulation Commission ID, hospital inventory, to e-sports game cards.

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Face card declined

Frasco might say her photos are a platform for job transparency, but for Filipinos online, that’s not the point.

“We don’t want to see your face on every promotional material of DOT. We need the ‘real’ tourism attractions,” wrote a user on Threads.

Complaints from social media users even went way back in 2025, as shown in another Threads post.

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As a result, netizens looked back on the DOT’s previous campaigns — most notably “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” campaign.

“Shortly after it was launched, it went viral as netizens began creating and posting their own versions online, showcasing local culture, destinations, and personal experiences,” wrote another Threads user.

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For communications consultant Pola del Monte, the DOT doesn’t just need to remove Frasco’s image in its materials — it must do an “overhaul” of its content.

“Content needs to be reframed for travelers seeking information. The research needs to be deeper, kind of like how magazines or content creators produce content,” Del Monte wrote on Instagram.

“This overhaul is not about cosmetic changes but about reimagining tourism communication as an experience in itself — one that informs, excites, and connects travelers to the richness of the Philippines,” she added.

– Rappler.com