Gen. Hans Menzi has just agreed for Liwayway Publications control to be actually clarified in writing. Tomorrow, Emilio Yap and he come for merienda to finalize the agreement.
His orange plantation in Mati is supplying oranges the whole year round, his African palm (Basilan) is producing 600 tons, he has replanted in Bukidnon 700 hectares to abaca for his pulp and paper plant which should start operating by June or July. He has arranged the Midland cement French financed cement plant of Lirog (who absconded or misspent the money for the civil works) payments of the deficiencies in construction so that it can start producing.
His Bulletin has made P650,000 this year although Manila Times made P4 million (it used to make P9 million).
Picop’s newsprint is good except for the color due to the wood pulp used.
They are now experimenting on planting eucalyptus or nani tree for pulp. Even the other loggers are. It allegedly can be harvested after three years. This would be better than katuan bangkal or albizia falcata which require five years.
Ambassador [Toshio] Urabe informed me after our 18 hole golf game this morning (7-11:30 AM) with the Japanese Economic Survey Mission under Mr. Ojimmy, that last night he received a message from his home government expressing concern over the statement of Sen. [Jose] Roy and the stories in the papers that the Phil-Japan Trade and Navigation Agreement would be rejected or ratified with conditions or reservations substantial enough to be equivalent to a rejection. This would embarrass the Japanese government which would like to continue aiding the Philippines.
He suggested that if the treaty cannot be ratified, then the best thing to do is not to reject it but to freeze it in the Senate.
I conveyed this to Sen. Pres. [Gil] Puyat, Sen. Jose Roy, Foreign Relations Com. Chairman of the Senate (who claims this has been his plan all along) and Sec. Carlos Romulo. I directed that we find out what reservations each senator has, then see if they are so substantial that the Japanese would consider them equivalent to rejection and if so we would freeze the treaty in the Senate committee. We meet on this on Tuesday.
Official Gazette for February 6, 1972: FREE from his usual schedule of callers, President Marcos devoted the whole day to desk work. He issued a proclamation declaring Saturday, February 19, a special public holiday in Bago City. The day marks the anniversary of the city’s organization.
Interrupting his desk work at about noontime, the President met with some members of his Cabinet who come to consult him on problems affecting their respective departments.
The President worked on his desk till late evening.
Ambassador Urabe apologized for an ambassador to be seeing the head of state directly on this but l encouraged him to see me personally if the Sec. of Foreign Affairs could not be of help.