From the palace to Pasig River
JANUARY has never been busy across all fronts of Lifestyle and Entertainment for many years now — pre-pandemic included. The beginning of the year is usually a time when beats just begin warming up, yet our bumper issues from Day 1 of 2024 — featuring brand new TV shows, upcoming movies, concerts, festivals, competitions, venue openings, and a myriad of other events — certainly portend a year that is very much on the go and dedicated to progress on all around.
Unsurprisingly, our ever-so-often crossover to government coverages — specifically the President’s events — oozed with the very same feel and frame of mind. In fact, no less than His Excellency “BBM” [the Chief Executive Bongbong Marcos’ famed monicker] was the man to show the way at these encounters, hardly taking pause over the holidays and starting the year as he ended 2023 — determined to deliver the “Bagong Pilipinas” he promised us all.
The same can be said, of course, for his wife, First Lady Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos, who, despite merely fulfilling the responsibilities of a better half to be beside her man, naturally emanates a welcoming energy that never fails to draw people to her.
At Malacañang Palace, for example — the first stop of two stops this month where we were invited to witness the President and First Lady at work anew — for the traditional New Year VinD’ Honneur that gathers the Diplomatic Corps, the President, noticing with pride how the ambassadors and other embassy officials, excitedly crowded around the First Lady teased in his speech, “I’m jealous you’re getting a bigger applause than I do.”
The First Lady, blushing slightly as the President lovingly beamed at her, quickly waved her hand to
shun the attention and led some 110 ambassadors from embassies around the world and their deputies and secretaries to listen to Mr. Marcos’ message of diplomacy, friendship, and international cooperation with the Philippines’ long time allies.
Present besides the diplomats at the beautiful Malacañang Palace Ceremonial Hall on the January 11 occasion were Cabinet members like Executive Sec. Lucas Bersamin, DOTR Sec. Jaime Bautista, Tourism Sec. Christina Frasco and DA Sec. Francis Tiu Laurel Jr.; Senate President Miguel Zubiri and Senators Cynthia Villar, Loren Legarda and JV Ejercito; as well as House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
We have to thank and congratulate the First Lady as well as Deputy Social Secretary Dina Arroyo-Tantoco and her team not only for mounting such a simple yet elegant Filipiniana cocktail event and program for the Vin D’ Honneur, but also for expanding the guest list to include representatives from various industries and circles like yours truly and several of my counterparts to witness how the President effectively uses social events to gain more support, possibilities and partnerships for the government’s goals. At just a few chit chats we joined between embassy officials and Sen. Cynthia, for example, seeds for environmental protection projects or partnerships toward food security with Sec. Francis were promisingly being planted.
So too were pledges for the First Lady big goal for the new year. When we caught a brief moment with her to ask what her 2024 priority would be, she excitedly said, “The Pasig River! You have to come join us again on January 17 and you’ll see.”
Eager to accept the First Lady’s invitation and find out what was making her giddy, we found ourself amid another expansive mix of movers and shakers — captains of businesses like Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala of Ayala Group, JG Summit’s Lance Gokongwei, Kevin Tan of Megaworld and even GMA Network top executive Annette Gozon and several socialites mingling with elected and appointed officials — all present at the “Pasig Bigyang Buhay Muli (PBBM)” launch on January 17.
Held behind the National Post Office overlooking the Philippines’ most famous river, PBBM is a comprehensive redevelopment project “that not cosmetic in nature,” as the President averred in his speech.
He urged everyone present “to consecrate ourselves to the mission of transforming Pasig River to what it is supposed to be: a living river of multiple benefits for the multitude, featuring safe walkways and bikeways along its banks, a green corridor that will serve as lungs for our city’s needs, a string of parks for communities nearby.”
PBBM envisions the 25-km stretch to be lined with commercial enterprises and civic spaces where children “can play, seniors can relax and families exercise,” a permanent exhibit area of green technology, and serve as and a hub of tourism and transportation where more stations will be built and ferry boats deployed for everyone’s use.
Arriving yet again at the official event with his popular First Lady by his side, and who again drew guests from all across society, it was widely applauded when the president announced she would be on the person rallying the private sector’s support for the truly worthy and long overdue cause.
Indeed, for our busy whirl of activities this January to include invites from the First Lady’s office, this start to the year has been more than just exciting. It has turned out to be more meaningful and engrossing for allowing me to see and learn more beyond simply what Paul Cabral design the First Lady is wearing.