My warmest greetings to the officials and members of the Rotary Club of Manila as you hold your Regular Membership Meeting at Makati Shangri-La Hotel on 05 August 2004.
It is heartening to note the various efforts of the Rotary Club of Manila in promoting community service towards nation building. Your commitment to socio-civic responsibility and volunteerism demonstrates the Rotarian spirit of truthfulness and goodwill. Indeed, your effort to foster understanding and cooperation despite the trials that confront us give us hope for unity. May your leadership continue to inspire others to persist in the effort to promote community involvement.
Like the year past, we shall continue to face daunting local, regional and global challenges. Even so, pockets of opportunities abound for enterprising businessmen. Government remains committed to a philosophy of transparency and free enterprise, while striving to create the conditions for business to flourish. Meantime, we must continue to draw on our inner strengths and focus on our domestic economy as our engine for sustained growth - as we strive to fortify linkages among our diverse sectors. We need to exert extra effort to fast-track our product and service competitiveness in global markets, and address internal issues which include re-training and upgrading of workers, skills to make the country's competitive advantages sharper still. Indeed, it is imperative for all sectors to put up a brave, daring, self-reliant, forward-looking and resourceful front during the most challenging period.
I am confident that the Rotary Club of Manila will mount their own initiatives not only for civic work and social service but also for rebuilding investor confidence and for revitalizing the prospects for economic growth in its area of jurisdiction. Likewise, I hope that the Rotary Club of Manila will support the administration?s fight against poverty by giving sectoral and social bias for our poor through visible direct pro-poor programs to give them a material stake in our country.
To the Rotary Club of Manila, my sincere congratulations and best wishes.
Mabuhay! |