Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez on Tuesday hailed the success of President Marcos’ Tokyo trips which, in conjunction with his state visit last February, has generated a total of over P771 billion in investment pledges expected to create thousands of jobs for Filipinos.
On Monday President Marcos reported the signing of new agreements and pledges worth a total of P14.5 billion in investments following the Department of Trade and Industry-led (DTI) business event on the sidelines of his participation in the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit.
Together with the letters of intent signed last February and nine agreements signed Monday, Malacanang said investment commitments from Japanese investors now aggregate P771.6 billion or about US$14 billion, opening up 40,000 job opportunities for Filipinos.
“President Marcos has proven himself a champion for economic growth and job creation. These investment pledges secured in Japan are a testament to the international community’s confidence in the Philippines’ future under his leadership,” Romualdez said.
“The promised over 40,000 jobs are not just numbers, they represent families lifted out of poverty, brighter futures for our youth, and a stronger middle class. President Marcos’ dedication to attracting foreign investments translates directly into improved livelihood for our countrymen,” added the leader of the 310- strong House of Representatives.
The Palace has also reported P169 billion of actualized investments from agreements with Japanese investors signed last February.
Romualdez pledged the full support of the House of Representatives in the administration’s effort to create a more investor-friendly ecosystem in the Philippines not only for Japanese but also for other foreign businesses, through necessary legislation to address their concerns.
In his address during the signing of new agreements and updates on investment pledges, President Marcos said his administration continues to listen to issues, concerns, and suggestions of investors on “what needs to be done to continue supporting and ensuring their success in the Philippines.”
Mr. Marcos added that his administration takes due note of these “valuable feedbacks,” adding that they work closely with Congress to enact much-needed legislation” that would satisfactorily address such concerns.
“That is why the Speaker of the House of the Representatives of the Philippines is here, accompanying us, on what is essentially is a business delegation but because of the laws in the Philippines dictate that all revenue measures that are undertaken or new laws that are revenue measures must originate from the House of Representatives,” he told Japanese business leaders.
“The inputs and suggestions we personally hear from potential investors during these trips would be invaluable in crafting laws meant to answer the issues they have raised to ensure that these investment pledges would come to fruition and create jobs for thousands of Filipinos,” Romualdez said.
Romualdez earlier said the House would push for amendments to the restrictive economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution to further open the country’s doors to foreign investments.
For his part, President Marcos said he has ordered a study on whether the country’s constitution needed to be revised to draw more foreign investment, noting certain laws drawn from the constitution either ban or discourage foreign investors from some parts of the economy.