Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo hosted Tuesday senatorial candidates of the Hugpong ng Pagbabago in the hometown of her sister-in-law in Negros Occidental where the latter is running for the House of Representatives.
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“When I saw the schedule of Hugpong, I’ve seen that they don’t get a rally yet here. Since my sister-in-law is a candidate in the fifth district, I said maybe we can invite them. Of course, they accepted it. Negros Occidental is a very big province… It’s really for the Hugpong candidates to introduce themselves to the people of Negros Occidental,” she told reporters during her visit to Teleperformance Bacolod City, the first BPO company in the Visayas region which she inaugurated in 2006.
Arroyo’s sister-in-law, Marilou Arroyo, is running unopposed for the fifth congressional district of Negros Occidental.
After visiting her Roll-on-Roll-off ports and urban poor housing projects, Arroyo continued with her “sentimental journey” by going to the first BPO office in the Visayas region.
“Like what we did the last time, I want to go to my favorite projects. Of course, developing the BPO industry was one of my proudest accomplishments and I remember this was a first in the Visayas when we opened it here. That’s why we visited again in 2010 when I was reviewing my projects,” she said.
Arroyo has been credited for the rise of the BPO industry in the Philippines.
Her pioneering initiatives and her administration’s support to the industry led to its phenomenal growth in the country.
These included the creation of the ITBPAP, creation of the Commission on Information and Communication Technology, providing investor support through the accreditation of buildings used by the industry, completion of infrastructure projects like airports, and training vouchers from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority worth over P800 million from 2007-09.
During her presidency, BPO industry grew on an average of 65 percent per annum over a decade and had nearly half a million workers by the end of 2009 which was then President Arroyo’s last full year in office, growing from only $1.3 billion in 2003 to $8.9 billion in 2010.
By the end of her term in 2010, the Philippines has assumed the No. 1 position as top BPO destination. Today there are about 1.3-million Filipinos working in the BPO industry.
It is expected to grow to 1.7 million in the coming years accounting to 10 to 15-percent share of the global market share.
Arroyo was delighted to see the growth of Teleperformance in Bacolod City and the entire country.
“I’m so happy how it has grown and I’m so happy that those who were working here before are still here now in higher positions. That’s really something to be said about the company’s ability to retain its talents. That’s really a ground for congratulations and of course they’ve grown,” she said.
Arroyo has been going on a “sentimental journey” to her favorite projects during her presidency as she prepares to step down from public service on June 30.
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