PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday called on business leaders worldwide to “build” in the Philippines, noting that the country is positioning itself as a global investment hub.
In his keynote address at the Luzon Economic Corridor (LEC) Investment Forum held in Taguig City, Marcos said the Philippines is ready to become a hub for long-term global investment amid shifting supply chains and rapid technological change.
“To the investors and business leaders here today: I invite you to build with us,” Marcos said.
Originally launched as a trilateral initiative between the Philippines, the United States and Japan in 2024, the corridor has since attracted support from Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, South Korea, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
Marcos emphasized that the economic corridor — connecting Subic Bay, Clark, Metro Manila and Batangas — serves as the administration’s primary strategy for organizing national economic growth.
“Subic Bay is a strategic maritime and industrial gateway; Clark is emerging as a center for aviation, logistics, technology and urban development; Metro Manila remains the country’s commercial and financial center; and Batangas is a major base for manufacturing, energy and international trade,” Marcos said.
“By connecting these areas more efficiently, we are creating a powerful economic platform for Luzon and the entire country,” he added.
Marcos pointed to expanding domestic capabilities in semiconductor research and design, shipbuilding, marine engineering and local critical mineral processing.
“We want more value to be created here through domestic processing, manufacturing, research, innovation, with strong environmental safeguards and clear benefits for affected communities,” the president said.
During the event, a rally was staged outside the hotel venue led by the Bagong Alyansang Makbayan (Bayan) rejecting the Pax Silica initiative — which forms part of the LEC.
Pax Silica, set to be built in New Clark City in Tarlac, is a 4,000-acre tech-industrial hub for artificial intelligence and semiconductor manufacturing.
Locals from Capas, Tarlac, said they were being asked to move for the construction of the hub. In a statement, Bayan said the LEC is “a massive sellout of Philippine patrimony and sovereignty to foreign interests.”
It argued that the project will displace Indigenous and farming communities to extract critical minerals while serving American military interests. The protesters had a brief skirmish with the police. Deputy district director Col. Robert Baesa of the Southern Police District told The Manila Times that 16 officers got injured and four protesters were arrested.
Chuckie Calsado, chairman of Advocates of Science and Technology for the People — the group which had joined Bayan in the protest — told The Times they were only there to stage a “legitimate protest.” “The protesters were there for a legitimate protest. The police were the ones with shields and nightsticks,” said Calsado.
Baesa said the protesters had no rally permit.
