President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will leave tomorrow for a two-day working visit to Japan to honor an international commitment as a founding member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and to further promote the Philippines as an investment haven for Japanese businessmen.

Along with the other nine leaders of ASEAN, the President would attend the two-day ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit to be held in Tokyo December 11-12.

Since she assumed the presidency in early 2001, the President has considered Japan as a tried and tested economic partner, being the Philippines’ number one source of official development assistance (ODA) and the second biggest trading partner, after the United States.

To stress the importance that her administration has attached to the country, Japan was the first non-ASEAN country that the President visited after ascending to the presidency. Her first visit to Japan as president was on Sept. 12-15, 2001. It was an eventful visit coming on the heels of one of the bloodiest terrorist attacks on the United States, what is now known as 9-11 attacks.

The decision to hold the ASEAN-Japan summit in Tokyo was made during the ASEAN Summit in Bali, Indonesia on Oct. 8, 2003, which was also attended by the President.

During her first day in Tokyo, the President will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi where they are expected to discuss bilateral issues that would center on trade and economic matters.

The President will also meet with Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi where they are expected to talk about the upcoming resumption of the formal peace negotiations between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Badawi’s predecessor, has been instrumental in the revival of the stalled talks between the MILF and the government. The talks are expected to reopen in Kuala Lumpur next month.

In an interview with the Nippon Hoso Kyodai (NHK), the President said she is hopeful that during her visit, the negotiations for the Japan-Philippine Economic Partnership Agreement would be speeded up.

"I hope we can conclude it soon because I think that between the Philippines and Japan the relationship is not one of rivalry. It is more one of complementarity, " the President said.

The President explained that the Philippines is not asking Japan to open up its agriculture market to products from the Philippines. She emphasized that what Japan needs, and what the Philippines can offer, are young people who can act as care-givers for the older people of Japan.

"So, there’s very, very great complementarity and I believe that that should make our economic partnership agreement get concluded faster," the President said.

The President will also witness the signing of loan agreements for three big power projects with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) with a total worth of $208.5 million.

The ASEAN-Japan Summit will be co-chaired by Koizumi and Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri, this year’s chairman of ASEAN.

The ASEAN leaders, including the President, have recognized the importance of ASEAN-Japan relations, which have been mutually beneficial and have matured for the past 30 years.

To strengthen this economic partnership, the ASEAN leaders and Prime Minister Koizumi signed during the ASEAN Summit in Bali the Framework for Comprehensive Economic Partnership between ASEAN and Japan.

During his visit early last year to the original five members of ASEAN, Koizumi proposed five initiatives to strengthen ASEAN-Japan relations based on the spirit of "acting together, advancing together."

Koizumi’s five initiatives to strengthen ASEAN-Japan relations are 1) education and human resource development; 2) comprehensive economic partnership (CEP); 3) initiative for development in East Asia (IDEA); 4) cooperation in transnational and security matters; and 5) designation of 2003 as ASEAN-Japan Exchange Year.

The ASEAN-Japan relations started in l973 and were later formalized in l977 with the establishment of the ASEAN-Japan Forum.

I am aware of the partisan developments going around us but my mind is more focused on the yearend prospects of the economy and how this will carry us on to the next year.

It is during the holiday season that we truly appreciate the meaningful contribution of our OFWs to our economy as well as the joy they bring their families.

This is one reason why I am traveling out to Japan, Hong Kong and Bahrain over the next few days—to see our OFWs and express our gratitude for their being there for our country and for our people.

There are a lot of speculations about what Commander Robot knows but the important thing is that we have accounted for a notorious terrorist and we know that his cohorts are on the run.

This is important to our international alliance against terrorism because many of Commander Robot’s victims have been foreigners who must be given justice.

I am sure that he will be a good source of information on the remaining cells of the Abu Sayyaf and their alliances with foreign groups.

The PNP and AFP are ready to counter any threats of terrorism arising from the capture of Commander Robot—whether these arise in Mindanao or in Metro Manila.

We know their lairs and these are being closely watched.

Our checkpoints and chokepoints have been alerted for possible terrorist movements and these will be interdicted alongside kidnap or robbery gangs.

It is not only politically that the Philippines has come to use "people power" to good advantage.

Professionally, the Filipino workforce is one of the most compelling advantages the country has over any of its Asian neighbors.

Consider:

-- With a higher education priority, the literacy rate in the country is 94.6 per cent, among the highest in the world.

-- English is taught in all schools, making the Philippines the world’s largest English-speaking country outside of the United States.

-- Every year, there are some 350,000 graduates enriching the professional pool.

People power is but one of the come-ons the government, through the Board of Investments (BOI), is using to attract investments to the country.

It has, among others, also listed among the country’s advantages its strategic location, first class lifestyle, abundant resources, low cost of doing business, liberalized and business-friendly economy, unlimited business opportunities, and a developing infrastructure for global growth.

The BOI cited the country’s state-of-the-art telecommunications facilities, adequate and uninterrupted power supply, ready-to-occupy offices and production facilities, computer security and building monitoring systems as well as complete office services in specialized information technology (IT) zones as the reasons why the country is all the investors need and more.

Malacaņang today cited the importance of the two-day working visit of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to Tokyo starting tomorrow to attend the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit.

In a radio interview, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the visit would give the President an opportunity to discuss bilateral issues with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

Japan, Bunye said, is the Philippines’ biggest source of official development assistance (ODA) and the second largest trading partner, after the United States.

During her visit, the President will also witness the signing of major loan agreements that could provide electricity to far-flung areas in the country and help implement the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA).

He said that during the visit discussions for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement between the Philippines and Japan could also be stepped up although the agreement may not be signed yet.

"Definitely, that will be one of the topics to be taken up by the President during her bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Koizumi," Bunye said.

According to Bunye, the agreement would contain what the President has cited as complimentarity between the needs and resources of both countries.

He cited as example, the aging population of Japan who would need the services of care-givers and health workers that the Philippines could provide.

In return, Japan can continue to provide new technology to the Philippines, not to mention the ODA and Japanese investments in the country, Bunye said.

CEBU CITY --- All political parties here today expressed their readiness to support the bid of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for a full six-year term in order to fulfill her vision to achieve the unity, stability, progress and prosperity for the country and the province of Cebu.

Cebu Vice Governor John Henry Gregory Osmeņa of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) stressed this point in an ambush interview during the "gathering for unity" of all political parties in the province at the Grand Convention Center here.

In his remarks, Osmeņa said that the need now is to move away from too much politics and to concentrate on the unification of all political sectors for the sake of the economic development of Cebu and the whole nation.

Osmeņa, son of the Sen. John Osmeņa, asked his colleagues in the NPC here and from the other political parties to join hands with him to seek the best way to hasten the development of the province and the country.

Cebu Governor Pablo Garcia also assured the President that the Cebuanos are willing to help her administration in pushing through her vision for unity and reconciliation in exchange for all the assistance and support they received from her in improving the economy and business climate of the province.

Governor Garcia also assured the President that he would personally campaign to make sure that she would win in the province in the 2004 presidential elections.

"We will assure you, Madam President, of an overwhelming victory in our province," Garcia said.

In a separate interview, Speaker Jose de Venecia, Jr. lauded all the political leaders of Cebu for their initiative and support to the unity call of the President.

"Napakaganda ng visit ng Presidente ngayon (The President’s visit is very fruitful). For the first time all of the political leaders of Cebu from all the political parties are all here," de Venecia said.

He said the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats party is formalizing a coalition agreement with the NPC, with the Liberal Party, and with the Nacionalista Pary.

De Venecia also noted that Representative Ace Durano of the 5^th District of Cebu, the national secretary general of the NPC, is now working on a grand alliance to be completed hopefully before Christmas.

Also present during the unity were gathering were Secretary Michael Defensor of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Countil (HUDCC), Secretary Elizea Gozun of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and Presidential Legislative Liaison Officer Gabriel Claudio.

Both Lakas-CMD and NPC partisans showed up in a unity forum for the President.

Among them were Cebu Representatives Jose Gullas (1st District), Simeon Kintanar (2nd District), Antonio Yapha (3rd District), Clavel Asas-Martinez (4th District), Ace Durano (5th District), Nerissa Soon-Ruiz (6th District), Cebu City Rep. Antonio Cuenco and party-list Rep. Emerito Calderon, Garcia, Vice Governor Osmena and the mayors of six cities and municipal mayors.

CEBU CITY—President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today thanked Cebu’s political leaders for heeding the call to unite behind her and the efforts to push forward the economic development of the province and the country.

"I thank you, leaders of Cebu, for your openness to reconcile differences and for rallying to the call to be change agents for the development needed in the twenty-first century and most of all the call to be agents of unity," the President said in a speech this morning.

She addressed a meeting of the leaders of Lakas-CMD and Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) to "maximize unity and harmony and minimize discord and disappointment" at the Cebu Grand Convention Center.

The President also expressed confidence that the local leaders of Cebu can work out their political differences and unite so that she, as a national leader, can focus on the country’s growth agenda.

"I have enough faith in the leaders of Cebu for me to focus not on details of consultations and negotiations but rather mainly on the year-end prospects of the economy and how this will carry us on to the next year," she said.

"And as I’ve said, I have faith in the leaders of Cebu to be able to work out that optimum solution for the good of Cebu and the good of our country," the President said.

The President stressed that the national economy is doing good. "Investments are doing well. Our growth rate is steady. Investments this year grew by 22 percent, many of them coming here to Cebu, specially in information technology," she said.

The President also took the occasion to extol the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) for their role in boosting the economy.

"It’s the holiday season. It is time for us to truly appreciate the meaningful contribution of our OFWs to our economy as well as the joy they bring to their families," she said.

Earlier in the day, the President said one of the reasons why she is traveling to Japan, Hong Kong and Bahrain is "to see our OFWs and express our gratitude for being there for our country and our people."

Formal peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are expected to start first week of January next year in Kuala Lumpur.

Chief government peace negotiator Silvestre Afable said in a briefing in Malacanang that there would be a short period of exploratory talks in the Malaysian capital before moving on to the formal opening of the peace talks with the secessionist group.

"We are now facing three distinct phases, one of which is the peace talks proper which is expected to start first week of January," Afable said.

Two other phases, in the talks, he said are the ceasefire and rehabilitation processes.

In the ceasefire process, Afable said the advance party of the ceasefire monitoring team, is expected to arrive in Mindanao on Monday.

"This is a seven-man team of Malaysian officers who will look at the terrain and determine the facilities and other things they would need for their ceasefire monitoring team. After this, we expect that the main body of the ceasefire monitoring team will be deployed," he said.

Afable said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo would bring "the message of peace in Mindanao" during her official visit to Bahrain on Dec. 15-16.

"The President will also thank Bahrain for its willingness to serve as one of the peace monitors in monitoring the ceasefire in Mindanao," he said.

On the other hand, the rehabilitation process, Afable said, is being done through the multilateral trust fund being spearheaded by the World Bank that is expected to be infused after the peace accord is signed.

"The World Bank, at this point, is setting up with what they call the joint need assessment to determine the specific projects that would be implemented after the accord is signed," he said.

Afable said the US Institute of Peace has also committed $30 million for enhanced education in conflict areas after the signing of the final peace accord.

At this time, Afable said the peace process is moving forward very well backed up by a very good peace constituency in Mindanao.

"The ceasefire is holding. We have almost nil incidents on the ground, and the diplomatic initiatives of the President are continuing to get this process on track as soon as possible," he said.

Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel A. Roxas II today announced his resignation and expressed elation over President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s good-natured acceptance of his request.

Roxas expects to be part of her senatorial line up in the May 2004 election.

Roxas said the President has officially accepted his resignation effective today.

"It is my desire to return to the legislative and I have discussed this with the President for a number of months. So it is not a surprise," Roxas said.

He likewise hinted that his possible replacement is a well known and respected businessman, adding that it is up to the President to announce the name of his replacement.

Roxas said the Liberal Party (LP), of which he is a member, is now in the process of selecting its possible presidential standard bearer in the May 2004 polls.