I am glad the opposition is moving towards unity so that we can get down to the business of threshing out the issues of the campaign.

On my part, I just arrived from a fruitful trip to Japan where I worked for a better deal for our OFWs and marked more gains for peace and development in Mindanao.

I shall be leaving for Bahrain tomorrow morning in pursuit of the same thrusts and we shall widen the range of our diplomacy to reinforce our domestic policies and programs to uplift the lives of our people.

Ours is an administration that has been working across continents to bring the message of Filipino pride and pride in the Filipino’s bright future.

TOKYO – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo lauded Filipino workers in Japan Friday night for the sacrifices they are making for the country, calling them "champions of our country’s force in economic development."

In a gathering attended by some 1,000 Filipino workers at the ballroom of the Takanawa Prince Hotel here, The President cited the 4.4 percent growth in gross domestic product (GDP) and 5.9 percent climb in gross national product (GNP) in the Third quarter, emphasizing that these came about with help from the remittances made by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

The meeting with the Filipino community here capped the President’s two-day working visit to Japan to attend the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit that ended here Friday.

In her speech, the President gave credit to the almost 300,000 OFWs in Japan for their donations and pledges for classrooms to be built in the country and for their tourism volunteer program that has accounted for some 300,000 visitors from Japan, making it the country’s second largest source of tourists.

In return and in appreciation of the big boost provided by OFWs, the President told them she has pursued programs to help them, like the overseas voting, dual citizenship and the anti-money laundering laws.

The President informed them that their number could increase as a result of her initial talks with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi that could allow more Filipinos in the health care and information technology sectors to work in Japan.

There is also the housing program on easy installment terms for OFWs, she said, so they can build houses for their families and settle in the country during their retirement.

The President vowed to move the country forward and use the experience she gained in her two-and-a-half years to keep the deficit under control, maintain the low inflation rate, increase tax revenues, and fight government corruption.

On the issue of corruption, she revealed that the World Bank has congratulated her administration for the series of lifestyle checks meant to curb the menace.

She also mentioned the electronic procurement law recently passed by Congress that would cut down graft in government purchases.

By moving forward, the President said, she wants to build infrastructure projects necessary to speed up the country’s development.

She also mentioned building a high-speed Internet, improve health care access by the people, and raise enough resources and revenues to be able to redouble spending on education.

"Ngunit kailangan rin na maghilom ang marami nang hidwaan sa ating lipunan.Kaya kabilang sa repormang kailangan para labanan ang kahirapan, labanan ang katiwaliaan, labanan ang krimen, kailangan din natin ng pagkakaisa at reconciliation (But we also need to heal the wounds of divisiveness in our society. That’s why beyond these reforms to fight poverty, graft and corruption and crime, we also need unity and reconciliation)," she said.

TOKYO—Trade and Industry Undersecretary Gregory L. Domingo and Japanese State IT Minister Toshimitsu Motegi have signed here an information and technology agreement on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit that ended here Friday.

Domingo, who was a member of the official entourage of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to the summit, said that IT cooperation agreement was in line with efforts to promote the "Asia IT Initiative" in the region. The agreement was signed at the Cabinet’s Office in Tokyo.

Information Technology is an engine of economic growth not only in Japan but also in the Philippines. "Both countries share a common view on the need to strengthen cooperation in the field of information technology," Domingo said.

Philippine Ambassador Domingo L. Siazon, Jr. and Commercial Counselor Roman Baltazar witnessed the signing of the IT accord.

With the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) as the lead agency, the agreement involves the dispatch of Japanese IT professionals to teach IT language to Filipino engineers.

Domingo, who is also the managing head of the Board of Investments, hoped that the program will enable Filipino IT professionals to take and hurdle the Japan IT Standard Examination (JITSE).

The agreement, Domingo said, will lead to the dispatch of Filipino IT specialists to Japan to "immerse" them in an e-learning environment in Japan.

He said that working groups will be formed early next year to discuss the schedule as well as components of the cooperation program.