Official Gazette for January 27, 1972: PRESIDENT MARCOS as usual started the day going over state papers. At mid-morning he interrupted his studies to confer the Order of Sikatuna (rank of datu) on Speaker Paik Too Chin of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea.
The President honored the Korean dignitary for his “service to international relations as a worthy spokesman of his people,” and which, as a result, helped strengthen the friendly ties between the Philippines and Korea and promoted greater understanding through the exchange of mutually beneficial ideas.
In accepting the decoration, Speaker Paik credited his colleagues at home and said that the visit here of Korean solons would help strengthen the friendly ties between the two countries so that the two peoples “will achieve the common goals they are presently pursuing.”
The entourage of Speaker Paik who also attended the conferment ceremony included Kim Chae Kuoang, Moon Tai Joon, Hyon Oh Bong, Lee Jung Suk, You Tark Kim, Park. Oang Yull, Chung Je Ho, and Lee Kwan Seuh, who are all members of the Korean National Assembly.
Also present at the ceremony were Senate President and Mrs. Gil J. Puyat, officials of the South Korean Embassy led by Ambassador Se Ryun Kim, Ambassador Narciso G. Reyes to the United Nations, Ambassador Benjamin T. Tirona to Korea; and Monico Vicente, DFA chief of protocol.
After the award ceremony, the President receive Francisco Ugale, president of the Filipino Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, who came here to help promote Philippine export trade with Hawaii.
Ugale informed the President that he was looking into the possibility of exporting locally manufactured fish products, among others.
He also recommended the establishment of a Philippine National Bank branch in Honolulu to serve over 100,000 Filipinos residing there, many of whom are successful businessmen and industrialists.
Following his meeting with Ugale, the President conferred with head of key departments and agencies involved in development and infrastructure projects, and called on them to coordinate closely to speed up completion of such projects.
In the afternoon, the President met with his legislative advisers.
The President pushed his announced drive against crime another step forward by sending to Congress a number of proposed laws to curb widespread criminality.
The bills seek to provide stiffer penalties for illegal possession of firearms or parts thereof and ammunition, and for violation of crimes relative to opium and other prohibited drugs; remedy the inadequacy of present laws on carnapping; include members of the Armed Forces as among those to whom licenses for the possession of firearms may be exhibited when called up to do so; and provide for free transmission of all mail matter involving data or information on crime, from provincial commanders to the Chief of Constabulary.
With respect to the proposed law increasing penalties for selling or administering opium, the President pointed out that the crime is particularly “heinous because the victims include students, minors and young women, many of whom, because of the drugs, are forced to live a life of shame, misery and criminality.”
The President worked on official papers in the evening.
The President also ordered that an inventory be made of all infrastructure and development projects, listed by category, so that the proper priority ratings could be determined for budget funding purposes.
During the 30-minute meeting, he was informed that:
1) Only 50′ per cent of P109 million intended for financing the “palagad” rice program had actually been loaned out to farmers by the rural banks.
2) The land reform program was suffering from lack of funds, particularly in Nueva Ecija where tungro destroyed the rice crops.
3) The release of 4,700 additional irrigation pumps was snagged by the lack of coordination between the National Irrigation Administration and the Irrigation Service Unit.
The President ordered a study on the possibility of merging the NIA and ISU in order to prevent overlapping of functions, and at the same time speed up the distribution of pumps.
The conference was attended by Secretary of Finance Cesar E.A. Virata, Executive Secretary Alejandro Melchor, Jr., Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources Arturo R. Tanco, Jr., Secretary of Agrarian Reform Conrado
Imelda and I started the day right. The night before we had had a false alarm as I started to feel some stomach pains and of course the first suspicion was a heart attack! But gelusil worked well to alleviate the pains and electrocardiography showed a very healthy heart.
So we woke to a bright morning of love and affection.
I met the various car manufacturers—Chrysler represented by Tito Yulo and Kaifu of Nisho-Imay, Nissan and [Niclovian?] with Anthony Lee.
Then we met the Korean delegation headed by Speaker Paik Ching Tao [sic] [Too Chin] whom I decorated with the Ancient Order of Sikatuna and with the rank of Datu.
Worked out the procedure for following up the kinks in the different projects with the various cabinet members specially the Executive Secretary, Sec. Cesar Virata, Budget Commissioner and Sec. of Public Works as well as Agriculture.
Estrella; Chairman Gerardo Sicat of the National Economic Council, Budget Commissioner Faustino Sy-Changcc-, Director General Apolinario Orosa of the Presidential Economic Staff, Assistant Executive Secretary Roberto V. Reyes, and Public Works Undersecretary Baltazar Aquino.