One of the highlights of the 9th edition of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition (PPIE) was Interior Secretary Benjamin “Benhur” Abalos’ presentation, which shed light on the local government’s commitment to transparency, good governance, and ease of doing business.
The secretary emphasized the importance of providing a conducive environment for investors, ensuring higher returns on investments, and fostering a holistic experience of living, working, and enjoying life in the Philippines.
In November last year, Abalos launched the BIDA campaign which stands for “Buhay Ingatan, Droga’y Ayawan.” It is a six-year anti-illegal drugs advocacy program that aims to employ a whole-of-government and whole-of-nation approach in combating the proliferation of illegal drugs in the country.
On January 4 this year, Abalos called for the resignation of all generals and colonels on national television.
“All 935, except for one person, filed their courtesy resignation,” Abalos said as he saluted the police force for such an act.
The Interior chief reiterated the administration’s call for “house cleansing”.
“We made billions of arrests, six, seven billion in October, four billion of this year…we’re going after the big fish and we are serious in house cleansing,” Abalos stressed.
“After this, we’re going to go through the law, the recruitment, everything, and make sure that of course, with this, the structures of government will really be there to serve the people,” he added.
Further, Abalos described the qualities of Filipinos which are embedded in the country’s fight against illegal drugs. This includes family, religion, and the spirit of bayanihan.
“The war on drugs will not only be fought on the basis of apprehension, on the basis of family, but on the basis also of looking at policy reforms,” he concluded.
The recently concluded PPIE 2023 was held from May 12 to 13 at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Deira Creek, Dubai. It is the largest and longest-running property and investment exhibition in the Middle East and has gathered thousands of attendees from different emirates with a notable presence of high-level delegates from the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates.
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