President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. is confident Filipinos will have more job opportunities following the unveiling of a township marker in Bacolod City on Sunday, October 23.
Marcos said this as he led the ceremonial unveiling of a township marker inside Megaworld's 34-hectare township development in the city.
In his speech, the President hailed the development in the province, saying it was vital in pushing forward the administration's initiatives for post-pandemic economic transformation.
"We are coming out of a difficult time in our economic history. But we see the light coming not from one place," he said.
"We see the light coming from our own people, from our government, and of course our private sector partnerships, individual citizens, and all of those who have participated in the partnerships that we are slowly forging and to give everyone a part in this transformation of our economy," he added.
Marcos expressed confidence that the multi-million project of the Alliance Global Group Inc., led by its CEO Kevin Tan, would generate not just menial jobs but quality jobs that will uplift the lives of Bacolodnons.
"If we continue on this trajectory, I am very confident, malakas ang loob ko na makapagsabi na siguro sa ilang taon, hindi na tayo masyadong maghihintay makikita natin na dadami ang trabaho (in just a few year we will see an increase of jobs here)," he said.
"Magagandang trabaho na may kasamang benefit, may kasamang mga safety net, na may kasamang mga lahat ng mga pangangailangan ng mga trabahador (Quality jobs that offers benefits, safety nets, and everything that workers need), which is something that is very, very important because it is quality jobs," he added.
For his part, Tan, who is part of Marcos' Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC), said the development of the township and the other investments of his company to Bacolod are expected to generate more than 500,000 direct and indirect jobs in Negros Occidental.
Among Tan's major projects now in the pipeline are the Megaworld Lifestyle Mall and the first-ever Landers Superstore in Western Visayas.