Filipino leader pledges to improve ties

JOSEPH Estrada, on his first overseas trip as Philippine President, yesterday met Singapore's leaders and called for more co-operation between the two once-estranged countries.

"My decision to visit Singapore first was right . . . as our relations are very important," he said.

Mr Estrada said he and Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong shared "a strong commitment" to strengthening co-operation.

Mr Goh also urged Mr Estrada to attend a meeting of Asia-Pacific leaders in Malaysia next month despite the arrest of former Malaysian deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, a Philippine official said.

Mr Estrada, who considers Anwar a friend, said in a radio interview on Saturday that he was still deciding whether to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum because of the treatment Anwar had received in custody.

Mr Goh "said he understood the President's feeling, but urged him to attend, saying it was important for the region", according to the Philippine official.

This afternoon, Mr Estrada was due to meet Indonesian President Bacharuddin Habibie, who has also expressed concern over Anwar's arrest.

Mr Estrada is also scheduled to deliver a keynote address today at the 7th East Asia Economic Summit sponsored by the World Economic Forum.

Singapore is the Philippines' third-largest trading partner, with trade totalling US$3.8 billion (HK$29.4 billion) last year. Singapore also is the fourth-largest importer of Philippine products and an important investor.

Mr Estrada said the two countries enjoyed a balanced trade relationship, adding that Philippine businessmen were now investing in Singapore in larger numbers to take advantage of its "dynamic competitiveness".

During yesterday's meeting with Singaporean and Philippine businessmen, Mr Estrada, who won the presidency by appealing to the poor and the disenchanted, reiterated his promise to transform the country economically without neglecting the poor.

"We are pro-market, pro-investment, pro-competition," he said, "but we will not forget safety nets for the marginalised sectors of the society."

Mr Estrada on Sunday met some of about 100,000 Filipinas who work as domestic helpers in Singapore and praised them as saviours of the Philippine economy.

Filipino workers worldwide are expected to send home more than US$6 billion this year.
Published in the South China Morning Post. Oct 13, 1998