• From Presidential Spokesperson Ernie Abella – PRRD on lobby as influence – not bribery
• From Presidential Spokesperson Ernie Abella – On the election of Moon Jae-in as President of the Republic of Korea
• President Duterte to meet with top business leaders, CEOs
• May pera sa basura goes global; Filipino designer shines in WEF

In what has been an impassioned issue, the appointment of Ms. Gina Lopez as DENR Secretary quickly polarized supporters between pro-environment and pro-mining, missing the position of the Duterte Administration, which is pro- environment and pro-responsible mining.

The way the issues were framed seemed to imply a “lobby” – or, an activity of a group (or groups) representing certain interests seeking to influence an outcome.

While the President did refer to a “lobby”, he did not mean bribery, which is also a negative meaning of the word. He does not mean that the members of the Commission on Appointments were financially persuaded to take a position on Ms. Lopez’ appointment.

The President remains faithful to his covenant of seeking justice for the wronged and the environment. He trusts that all branches of government share the same commitment.

The Philippines and the Republic of Korea have strong, comprehensive and long-standing bilateral ties. Our two countries have extensive cooperation on political, economic, cultural and people-to-people exchanges in the bilateral, regional, and multilateral spheres.

The Philippines is committed to further enhancing the relations with the ROK under President-elect Moon.

We wish him all the best.

“What is in it for the Philippines? He will be meeting with the top business leaders in one session as well as with the top 50 CEOs in another session,” Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Manuel Teehankee told reporters in an interview here on Wednesday, May 10, 2017.

There will be a separate session where President Duterte, together with other heads of state, will exchange ideas on economic development, improving technology, and addressing youth concerns with a group of 25 business leaders.

Duterte and other heads of state and ministers will also discuss in another session, with 30 regional stakeholders group, ideas on suggestions for improving good governance and economic ideas.

According to Teehankee, the two-day regional conference will also provide the Philippines the opportunity to showcase the advance of the ASEAN during its 50th year.

The Foreign Affairs official said it will also be the international launch of the Build, Build, Build program and DuterteNomics.

He said Cabinet officials will explain how the national budget-funded infrastructure program will take place in partnership and providing opportunities to the private sector.

Asked on the selling point of DuterteNomics for the international leaders, Teenhankee said the ASEAN master plan includes improving connectivity or infrastructure and logistics connectivity throughout the ASEAN region.

“This complements very well with the President’s 10-point socioeconomic agenda, as well as the federal regionalism and sub-economic regions program in the Philippines, which is also to improve connectivity through logistics improvement and infrastructure improvement,” he said.

Teehankee said Duterte will also showcase the
“very important connectivity launch” two weeks ago or the Davao-General Santos-Bitung Ro-Ro Shipping Network.

The Foreign Affairs official also noted that WEF is a top-level forum that allows close interaction among business leaders and government leaders.

He said the forum also promotes a dialogue towards improving the world economy and developing a better world for all citizens. ###PND

Francis Sollano, 30, a graduate of the University of the Philippines (UP) Cebu, is the only Filipino and only ASEAN designer exhibitor in this annual event attended by 700 leaders from business, public sector, science, arts, civil society, media and international organizations.

The dresses on display were designed by Sollano who used plastic waste from his home province of Cebu into wearable art for his sculptural and functional dresses.

Sollano, whose exhibit is outside the Plenary Hall, is excited to see and meet President Duterte in person as the latter walks through the red carpet to attend the Opening Plenary of the WEF regional meeting.

Sollano, an artist and co-convenor of Youth for a Livable Cebu, is no stranger in such gathering of world leaders having been part of the creative team of Kenneth Cobunpue who designed the venue for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) welcome dinner held in Manila last November 2015.

This is also not the first time that Sollano attended a WEF gathering. He is one of the Global Shapers chosen by WEF in Davos, Switzerland, for his art of “trashion” which uses trash and upcycles into fashion garments.

“We create fashion accessories, jewellery, clothing and costumes from what used to be considered garbage, thrown away items, and they are given new life by creating more value into them,” Sollano said.

Sollano added that he needs to be very creative and innovative to make the garbage or trash into something that the public or the mass media would appreciate saying that the “movement” has seen positive feedback from the fashion industry.

“More fashion brands are looking at how can they make use of their wastes into something functional. From their waste they create into bags or other components in their new design. That is how the fashion brands are now moving themselves adapting to the idea of trashion,” Sollano pointed out.

According to The New Plastics Economy, a WEF report, the world’s oceans will be filled with more plastic than fish by 2050 in terms of mass.

“It is painful to see garbage littered all over the cities,” Sollano said, “I wish to reignite a culture that truthfully values our environment and takes responsibility over our garbage.”###PCO-Content