March 30-April 7, 1974

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Official Gazette for March 30, 1974: THE PRESIDENT has converted the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System into a stock corporation with a capital stock of P1 billion to enable the system to undertake a long-range development program to fill the increasing demands of an expanding population, including the needs of growing and other commercial establishments. The convertion, embodied in Presidential Decree No. 425 will also give the system a wider latitude of fiscal projections that it is allowed at present. The decree authorized the system to adopt measures to enhance the maximum utilization of national resources to prevent environmental pollution.
FOREIGN investors were urged to recognize native abilities to organize and manage Philippine-based enterprises so as to make foreign investments in this country a dynamic partner in developing the economy. This was advocated by top Filipino government and private sector leaders during the whole-day forum on the role of foreign investments in national progress sponsored by the National Economic Protectionism Association (NEPA). Sixto K. Roxas, president of Bancom Development Corp. and one-time chairman of the National Economic Council, in a speech before the forum, voiced the Filipino view that the country adopt an adroit, flexible, foreign investment policy.”

Official Gazette for March 31, 1974: THE PRESIDENT has ordered the dispersal of ownership of the Planters Products Cooperative Marketing and Supply, Inc. (PPI) in order to diversify the ownership of PPU among all fertilizers-consuming farmers, and to enable the government to fully support the necessary expansion of fertilizer production. The President pointed out that the expansion of fertilizer production. The President pointed out that the expansion of domestic fertilizer production will have to be dramatically accelerated to meet the rapidly rising local demand for fertilizer. Such expansion will entail heavy government involvement in the future including possible government guarantees of million of dollars.
BOARD of governors of the Development Bank of the Philippines may now have a vice chairman who shall preside over the meetings of the board in the absence or temporary incapacity of the chairman. The designation of the vice chairman from among the eight members of board is provided for in Presidential Decree No. 423, which amended section 14 of Republic Act No. 85, as amended by R.A. 3517. The amendatory decree was issued by the President in pursuance of the policy to promote efficiency in the public service.
THE FIRST Lady appealed to everyone to get involved in the green revolution, stressing that a developing nation like the Philippines needs the cooperation of all to make the country self-sufficient in food. She pointed out that the struggle against hunger knows no class or barrier as man must eat to survive, and “we can overcome this problem by relying ourselves by getting everyone involved.” The First Lady was guest of honor at the launching of “Green Race ’74” under the auspices of provincial, city municipal and other officials of Luzon provinces, held at Greenhills, Pasig, Rizal.
THE PRESIDENT has appointed to new positions five provincial and city treasurers in Mindanao, upon the recommendation of the secretary of finance. The appointees are: 1) Fernando A. Miguel, provincial treasurer of Cotabato, as provincial treasurer of North Cotabato, provincial treasurer of Sultan Kudarat; 3) Tamagantang Pangilamen, city treasurer of General Santos City, as provincial treasurer of Maguindanao; 4) Sixto L. Chavez, assistant provincial treasurer of Sulu, as provincial treasurer of Tawi-Tawi; and 5) Arturo H. Ramos, assistant provincial treasurer of South Cotabato, as city treasurer of General Santos City.

Official Gazette for April 1, 1974: THE PRESIDENT received the four-man goodwill mission from the Khmer Republic, headed by Foreign Minister Keuky Lim. In welcoming the members of the mission, the President requested them to convey to the head of government of the Khmer Republic the strong support of the Philippines to the proposal for a negotiated peace in that country. The President also expressed the hope that the peace situation in the Khmer Republic had considerably improved.
MASS media must serve the needs and goals of their specific setting, Secretary of Information Francisco S. Tatad told the ASEAN Training on Mass Media at the University of the Philippines. Rejecting a generally held view that the mass media are governed by concepts common to all nations and traversing all social and economic climates the secretary said that the “value of media as a social activity or institution is solely determinable from the kind of support that they give to a society and its purposes.” The secretary admitted that his subject, “Communication and Development,” has been obscured by many lofty misconceptions. But he proposed a conceptual framework for the media in our country as well as a practicable program for transforming this model a reality, so as to “bring down from the sky” the nebulous subject.
DEADLINE for all cooperatives in the country to comply with re-registration requirements has been extended to June 30. This was announced by Secretary Jose A. Roño of the Department of Local Government and Community Development (DLGCD). In making the announcement, Secretary Roño said no other extension will be made after June 30 to enable the DLGCD to finalize and put its records in order. Henceforth, he said all cooperatives are advised that failure to submit and comply with all the requirements will be considered sufficient ground for non-registration.

Official Gazette for April 2, 1974: THE PRESIDENT received the letters if credence of Ambassador Cai Torne Oskar Melin as the new non-residing ambassador extra ordinary and plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Sweden to the Philippines. The new Swedish envoy also presented to the President the letter of King Carl Gustaf, recalling his predecessor, Ambassador Karl Henrik Andersson. In accepting the credentials of the new envoy, the President assured Ambassador Melin of “Our continuing cooperation and constant widening of our contact.” The Swedish envoy, on the other hand, expressed the “sincere wish of my government and my people that the Philippines may continue its successful course to still greater prosperity and happiness.”
THE PRESIDENT has discontinued, effective April 1, 1974, the use of the coupon system (gas receipts and has issue card) in the allocation of gasoline in the light of the easing up of the available crude oil supply, but oil conservation will continue to be observed. Abolition of the coupon system, according to Letter of Instructions No. 178-A, is likewise intended to provide the impetus to maintain the momentum of the country’s economic growth.
DEPARTMENT of Finance announced that the Government will continue to impose the dumping duty on white cement imported from Japan and Taiwan. The announcement was made after Secretary of Finance Cesar E. A. Virata denied a motion for reconsideration filed by the Fil-American Hardware and Construction Supply which protested the duty imposition. The department said investigation showed there was dumping and that white cement from Japan was being imported and sold in the Philippines at prices (US $29.69) lesser that the fair value (US $60.90). The department fixed the dumping duty on white cement imported from Japan at US $31.21 per metric ton as required by the Tariff and Customs Code.
DEPARTMENT of Labor noted a sharp increase in the number of private firms reporting compliance with the President’s appeal on emergency allowances. Labor Secretary Blas F. Ople said that the number of responding firms rose to 4,132 from 3,100 listed. This reflected an increase of more than 1,000 firms complying with the reporting requirement under Letter of Instruction No. 174 in less than one day, he said. Mr. Ople said that on the basis of 4,312 responding firms 222,525 workers will be benefitted by the allowances.

Official Gazette for April 3, 1974: THE PRESIDENT announced that no Presidential Decree has been issued granting tax amnesty or immunity from tax investigation for the taxable year 1973. This announcement was made to dispel all speculations about the issuance of such a Presidential Decree.
DEPARTMENT of Finance ruled factories are not supposed to pay business taxes to the cities or municipalities they are located unless sales are made or goods sold are invoiced at the factories. Secretary of Finance Cesar E. A. Virata issued this opinion in answer to inquiries from several business firms. However, the municipality may levy permit fees and other regulatory fees on the factories located within their territorial jurisdictions, the secretary said.
THE PRESIDENT and First Lady received a high-level woman delegation from Romania which arrived to look into the possibility of promoting greater cooperation and stronger friendly relations between their country and the Philippines. The delegation was composed of Madame Suzana Gidea and Madame Florida Andrei, with Mr. Radui Liviu acting as interpreter. The delegation expressed belief that the establishment of Romanian embassy in Manila and a Philippine embassy in Bucharest could help promote cooperation between the two countries along economic, social, cultural and industrial fields.

Official Gazette for April 4, 1974: THE PRESIDENT was today presented with a draft of the Muslim Law Code of 1974, with codification of Muslim substantive law to be made later. The presentation was made by the research staff for the Codification of Philippine Muslim Laws, a unit under the Presidential Task Force for the Reconstruction and Development of Mindanao and Sulu.
NATIONAL Power Corp. has reported to the President that it has begun a massive 12-year power expansion program which will save the Philippines some P7.5 billion in oil importations over a 10 year (1975-1985) period. The NPC also expect that by the early Eighties, the national government will be saving three times the foreign exchange (estimated at $700 million this year) at present expended for energy imports. All this will be made possible, according to NPC General Manager Ramon R. Ravanzon, once the potentials of indigenous energy sources-geothermal, coal hydro-power are harnessed, and nuclear power plants are established.
BOARD of Investments and the Bureau of Internal Revenue have signed and agreement governing procedures on the availment of incentives under the Investments Incentives Act (R.A. 5186) and the Export Incentives Act (R.A. 6175). The agreement is designed to facilitate matters affecting investors and registered enterprises on the availment of benefits under the two laws. For this purpose, the two government bodies created the BIR-BOI working committee so as to weld harmony and cooperation in the performance of their respective function in connection with the implementation of the two laws. Under the agreement, the working committee will be composed of two BIR representatives and two from BOI.
TRADE between the Philippines and the United States has remained consistently in favor of the Philippines since 1969, according to the Department of Trade. Trade Officer-in-Charge Mario R. Reyes said that in 1973, trade between the two countries amounted to $1.1 billion, the highest during the last five years. Of this amount, he said, $671,308,445 represented exports against the Philippine imports of $449,492,080. He said the Philippines posted a balance of trade amounting to $221,816,365 in 1973, or an increase of $151,154,700 compared to the $70,661,665 registered in 1969.

Official Gazette for April 5, 1974: THE PRESIDENT is firmly convinced that greater production for export and domestic use will beat the present inflation crisis which has added $1 billion or more to the Philippines’ operations bill. He rejects retrenchment as a solution. In Letter of Instructions No. 161-A he appeals to the entire nation to join the general sustained efforts at survival through accelerated and increased production of both export and domestic products. He urges the people “to participate actively at their initiative, without waiting for detailed instructions.”
THE PRESIDENT has reserved around 40 hectares of the public domain in the municipality of Tigbauan, Iloilo, for the use of the Aquaculture Department of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC) in its research studies on the spawning and culture of shrimps, prawns and other crustaceans and fish species. The order is contained in Proclamation No. 1246.

Official Gazette for April 6, 1974: THE PRESIDENT directed the Oil Industry Commission (OIC) to conduct an overall study of the petitions of local oil companies for an increase in price for their petroleum products. In issuing the order, the President made it clear to the OIC that should it be found out after the study and evaluation of the petitions that there should be an increase in the price of petroleum products, such an increase in price should only be made once.
The PRESIDENT boarded the ship, the RPS Ang Pangulo, for his traditional annual spiritual retreat. Retreat master is Rev. Fr. Michael McPhellen, professor of the Ateneo de Manila economics department. Other retreatants with the President on Board the RPS Ang Pangulo are some members of his Cabinet.
DEPARTMENT of Labor extended to May 7 the reporting deadline for compliance with the Presidential appeal for the grant of emergency living allowance to workers. Labor Secretary Blas F. Ople said that based on the latest reports from the Labor Statistics Services, a total of 10,220 establishments had reported compliance, benefitting 528,374 workers in manufacturing, commerce, agriculture, services and other industries. Secretary Ople expressed the gratitude of the workers and the Government to the cooperating firms, calling this response “an index of the nation’s social conscience and the economic statesmanship of industry and business.”
BACKPAY Certificates of Indebtedness may be used by original holders for the payment of hospital bills in the Government Service Insurance System General Hospital, according to the Department of Justice. Justice Secretary Vicente Abad Santos rendered this opinion upon request of National Treasurer Vicente P. Rodriguez. Secretary Abad Santos said that the GSIS General Hospital may be deemed a government hospital since its under a corporation owned or controlled by the government governed by the Uniform Charter for Government Corporations. He added that considering that the grant of backpay is an act of liberality on the part of the government, the provision of law allowing the acceptance of Backpay Certificates of Indebtedness in payment of debts to its agencies or instrumentalities should be construed liberally.

Official Gazette for April 7, 1974: COUNTRY’S land reform program is boosted anew with the creation of an inter-agency committee for the development and financing of industries in agrarian reform areas to benefit both farmers and landowners. Organized by the Office of the President through Memorandum Circular No. 717, the Committee will identify top-yielding projects in land reform localities, and help redirect idle agricultural capital into industrial production. Under this plan, the government hopes to increase the income of former landowners as well as

On board the 777
on spiritual retreat

From all the conferences with Ambassador Sullivan (we have had two more, on Tuesday April 2, at 10-12 AM and the last on Friday on board the 777) is that the U.S. is unwilling or unable to help us both in trade as well as military matters.

Although we will wait for the result of his trip to Washington where he goes on April 12th to obtain a change of instructions as he himself has stated.

I have put my trust in him and hope that he can convince his superiors—[Henry] Kissinger, [Richard] Nixon and Congressional leader.

With the Congress preoccupied with the Watergate scandal and Impeachment and the State Department with the Middle East, the oil crisis and Russia. I seriously doubt if Sullivan will get anywhere.

The atmosphere in Washington is soured farther by the paralyzing effect of inflation.

So we must work out an alternative plan. We will first try to be tough without offending Washington into taking retaliatory action against the administration and government (or we personally as the CIA [Central Intelligence Agency] did on several occasions in the past).

But the last recourse is to depend on ourselves by supporting our military requirements with income from sales of exports to better markets now. This is specially true of sugar. The price of sugar is higher in the world market than in the American market. If we desist from selling, say our five hundred thousand tons, in the U.S. market it in the world market. We could raise the necessary funds for our military and instead sell modernization program.

We could do this by setting aside some percentage of logs or ore for military expenditure in the next several years—logs for the privilege of exportation.

of the farmers benefited by the land reform program.