PNoy hypes PHL ‘transformation’ to Pinoys in Spain

"Everywhere you look, you will see transformation."

This was how President Benigno Aquino III presented the Philippines to the Filipino community in Spain during the first leg of his European tour.

In a speech before Filipinos in Madrid on Sunday, Aquino trumpeted his administration's economic gains, particularly growth in the country's gross domestic product, and several credit ratings upgrade.

"Patuloy ho tayong nagsisikap para patuloy na mapaarangkada ang ating ekonomiya. Ang ating pagsisikap, natutumbasan ng resulta," he said.

He added that these economic gains are bringing more business opportunities in the country.

"Sa mga matagal naman pong ‘di nakakauwi sa atin, siguro pagbalik ninyo, magugulat kayo sa laki ng pagbabago. Ang dami pong bagong gusali at talagang ibang-iba na ang skyline, ‘di lang sa Metro Manila—pero pati na rin po sa Metro Cebu, sa Davao, at iba pang mga ibang lugar," he said.

Aquino even joked about the country's worsening traffic congestion. "Pati sa larangan po ng trapiko po, nagbago na. Lalo hong malala ang trapiko natin ngayon," he said.

The President further cited how his administration managed to remove corrupt practices in public works projects.

"Nakakamtan natin ang mga bagong imprastrukturang ito nang hindi po nauuwi sa kickback at tongpats ang pondo ng gobyerno," he said.

Aquino is scheduled to leave Spain and proceed to Belgium within the day.

Some 44,000 Filipinos are currently living in Spain while 6,600 reside in Belgium, according the Department of Foreign Affairs.

In Belgium, Aquino is expected to meet with European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and Belgian King Philippe.

After these, Aquino will proceed to France and Germany for the final legs of his European visit. —Andreo Calonzo/KBK, GMA News

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more