MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Medardo Macaraig said the Philippines will not spend any taxes on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s attendance at the Singapore Grand Prix this weekend.
“That is an invitation from Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. We will hardly incur any expenses for it... He won’t have to pay even a single peso,” Macaraig said in Filipino in a press briefing on Wednesday.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) earlier confirmed that Wong invited Marcos to attend the event for “informal engagements” with government officials, business leaders, and investors.
Back in 2022, Marcos’ attendance at the Singapore Grand Prix drew backlash from lawmakers and several advocacy groups for being poorly timed, as parts of the country were then being flooded by the then Super Typhoon ‘Karding.’
