Thank you Japan for the years of friendship!

I watched the televised meeting with Pres. Rodrigo "Digong" Duterte and perhaps a thousand or so Overseas Foreign Workers in Japan, which proves to us that the popularity of Pres. Duterte hasn't waned, even after his overtures to China and "hurtful" stance against the US government. Before these OFWs, Pres. Duterte made a vow, "Ang pagtrabaho n'yo sa ibang bansa, hanggang diyan na lang. Next generation, [sa] Pilipinas na [magtrabaho]. We have to improve the economy na hindi ka na babalik dito, na kung bumalik ka rito, baka-bakasyon na lang."

Of course, we know that the reason why these OFWs are working in Japan is due to the fact that they are well paid in Japan. Last November, I went to Osaka and went shopping and met two Filipinas who were also shopping in the same store. We got to talk and they thought that I was also working in Osaka. When I told them I was leaving in a few days, they remarked that I was so lucky I was there for a vacation.

But while Pres. Duterte made this vow that no other Philippine President ever made. This is not an easy task. It is a fact that the dream of the average Filipino is to acquire a US visa and get a job in the United States. This is why you see long queues of Filipinos lining everyday at the US Embassy hoping against hope to get that US visa so they could go to the US. The ordinary Filipino has the wrong notion that their relatives living in the US are well-off. This is why many Filipinos who made it to the US do not come back because they cannot even bring "pasalubongs" to their relatives simply because they work very hard, but do not earn enough to have extra cash.

But this is not to say that we cannot dream for a better future that we Filipinos will forever be working abroad because the jobs here at home don't pay well. But before we go off our rockers, I hope you folks didn't forget that the Philippine economy stands on two major pillars the remittance by OFWs and the Business Process Outsourcing industry. It is for these two reasons why the Philippines continue to have a stable economy because our ASEAN neighbors except perhaps for Indonesia do not have OFWs and none of them have any BPO industry.

Speaking of the BPO industry, the Philippines is the only major competitor with India according to the Tholons Survey. I know that people working in the BPO industry are jittery at the cursing remarks of Pres. Duterte  especially against the Americans. This might lead to BPO investors leaving the Philippines. However, I don't know of any BPO company who has decided to shut down its operations because of the remarks of Pres. Duterte. I do know that certain BPO companies who have decided to downsize their operations to reduce their operational costs continue to operate even in the homes of their CEO's because it is still cheaper to run a business here.

Incidentally in Japan, one of the biggest companies that employ thousands of people are in the railroad business. For instance, the JR Line or the Shinkansen or Bullet Train employs workers all over Japan. But since we don't even have a railroad except in Luzon perhaps it is time for the Duterte administration to seriously consider building railroad trains for the Visayas and Mindanao. The construction of a railroad from Davao City to Cagayan de Oro City will certainly create jobs for thousands of Filipinos. So we've gotta be serious in making sure that the Mindanao Railway would become a reality and not just a dream.

Now the million-dollar question is who will be the partner of the Philippines in this railroad development venture? I certainly hope that Japan would get into the picture. I heard Pres. Duterte was profuse in his gratitude for Japan for giving the Philippines billions in infrastructure development and aid. This is very true. Cebu is a recipient of this Japanese aid. The road widening projects called Metro Cebu Development Program I, II, and III were funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency. This includes the Mactan Cebu International Airport, the North and South Bus Terminals, the Kansaga Bridge, the Marcelo Fernan Bridge, and yes, the South Road Properties. I hope I didn't miss anything!

Mind you, I'm only talking about the Japanese funded projects here in Cebu because I know them by heart; after all, I was Road-Right-of-Way Chairman of the MCDP projects. Now, do you want to talk about the Japanese companies doing business at the Mactan Export Processing Zone I & II? What about the Tsuneishi Heavy Industries shipyards in Balamban. These are Japanese companies that hire thousands of Cebuanos with well-paying jobs. That they don't have to be OFWs and work in Japan. Indeed, Pres. Duterte spoke for the Filipino people in thanking Japan for the years of friendship that they have given to us.

[email protected].