8:15 PM
After dinner and meditation
on board the 777
at Talaga Bay
While meditations and prayers seem routine and a poor concession to religion or the church I find them conducive to the humility that gives a new—ever new—perspective.
For my part while in everyday life I do seek the Godly point of view, the perspective is all the more refreshing.
And the over view of life as well as the conversation with God set firmer guidelines that may have escaped attention.
Solutions of intractable problems seem simple.
One of my advisers wrote to me of spiritual retreats that I should not be in the company of my subordinates. I must tell him when I seen him that one cannot call God a subordinate! For that is the company I keep.
Cyrus L. Salzburger in in the New York Times and the International Herald Tribune writes in his column about “Another Strong Man in Asia.” For once we are reported about our reforms—“he has hauled the Philippines out of stagnation.” Quite favorable. More then any I have heard so far.
I attach the April 11th edition of the Herald Tribune in which the writing appears.
Official Gazette for April 16, 1973: THE PRESIDENT has organized a land reform council to further hasten the transfer of land ownership to tenant-farmers. The council, with the President himself as chairman, is also aimed at protecting the present system of small land ownership that has developed ever the years through thrift of the small workers who put their savings in land. With the creation of the Land Reform Council, the President intends to resolve faster whatever problems are still existing concerning the implementation of the land reform program.
BUREAU OF LANDS announced that its regional oilier throughout the country have been authorized to approve survey maps and plans. The directive took effect April 4. Licensed private geodetic engineers may also submit to the regional land officers all isolation surveys for the necessary verification and approval. Acting Director Ramon S. Casanova listed the following lands offices authorized to approve survey maps: Region I—San Fernando, La Union; Region II—Tuguegarao, Cagayan; Region III—San Fernando, Pampanga; Region IV— Manila; Region V—Legaspi City; Region VI—Iloilo City; Region VII— Cebu City; Region VIII—Tacloban City; Region IX—Zamboanga City; Region X—Cagayan de Oro City and Region XI—Davao City.
THE PRESIDENT called on the country’s unresponsive leaders and bureaucrats to reform themselves, reexamine their values and gear their efforts to conform to the goals of the New Society. In a speech read for him by Philippine National Bank Director Renato Tayag during the 55th anniversary and reunion of the Upsilon Sigma Phi Fraternity of the University of the Philippines at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, the Chief Executive said these unresponsive leaders may have interest identified and vitally tied up with the corruption, the “palakasan system”, the injustices and the excesses of the old order. The Chief Executive added that he is giving these people enough time to mend their ways and to commit themselves to the new program of the government.
Some of the advisers of Pres. [Richard] Nixon who have talked to Gov. Benjamin Romualdez have reported that Pres. Nixon has wryly commented that if martial law could bring about laudable effects seen in the Philippines, then it is needed in the U.S.
The military report favourable results of clearing operations in Cotabato and Basilan although there is no report on the threat to Jolo by an enemy concentration 2 kilometers from that town.
The Goodrich plantation in Basilan has been recovered.
I attach reports.
Anaconda Co. has a new non-pollution chemical process of drawing out copper from the ore. Many U.S. copper producers including Anaconda Co. itself (in Montana) are faced with the stiff pollution laws in Western mining states to control the heavy sulphur dioxide emissions from heat-process smelters. The Anaconda process uses an ammonia-based “leach” that does not produce any air polluting emissions.
Before I allow the establishment of any copper smelter by Lepanto or Atlas, I must look into the Anaconda process and the problem of pollution.
Then I must look into the possibility of making the Philippines a tax haven for foreign corporations like Luxembourg.