BY CHRYSEE G. SAMILLANO
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., yesterday lauded property developer Megaworld for its continuing faith in the country by pouring in investments that will help generate job opportunities for the people especially in Bacolod City.
The President, together with Megaworld CEO Kevin Andrew Tan, led the inauguration of The Upper East and the unveiling of the township marker yesterday afternoon, while First Lady Louise Araneta-Marcos led the tree-planting along the Upper East Avenue Tree Island in the morning.
Marcos Jr. reiterated the government is planning to transform the Philippine economy in the next few years to be able to compete and to succeed in the new global post-pandemic recovery.
“You may have heard many, many times that we have talked about the partnership, coordination, and synchronization between the public and private sector. Megaworld and Kevin have shown that this is really the way forward to the future,” he said.
“We are coming out from a difficult time in our economic history. But we see the light coming not only from one place – we see the light coming from our people, our government, private partners, individual citizens and all those who will have participated in the partnership that we are slowly forging. And the partnership that we just have seen is a very good example of that,” Marcos said.
The President pointed out that the former Bacolod Murcia Milling Company (BMMC) where The Upper East now stands has significant connections to Bacolod City and will become more than just a historical site.
“It will become a center for development in Bacolod and I believe for the rest of the region. I am very confident to say that we will see more job opportunities, even quality jobs,” Marcos said.
He congratulated Megaworld for the new development it began and hoped to see more investments from the company and from all other groups in the country, he said adding that “Slowly we will begin to see that it will lift up the rest of the economy.”*