The problem is tourists fear for their safety. Whether that is a valid worry doesn't matter.
Tourists do have to fear for their safety. We brought our children to the Phils in 2000 but we did have to hire two body guards to follow us around. While we were there a bomb was set in a Manila mall and shortly thereafter some Americans were kidnapped by Moslem terrorists.
But the truth is that the infrastructure is a very major problem. To get to one of the most beautiful places in the Phils, the world even, (Palawan) we had to take a small 10 seater airplane, followed by a bus ride, followed by a boat ride. This was the case more than once in our travels there.