CAPITOL HILL MEETING. Vice President Jejomar C. Binay, accompanied by Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr., Rep. Abigail Binay-Campos and Mayor Jejomar Erwin S. Binay discuss bilateral issues with Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin, Chair of the Sub-Committee on East Asia and Pacific Affairs of the United States Senate, during a meeting in Washington, D.C. on Thursday. (Philippine Embassy Photo by Ariel Penaranda)
MANILA (Mabuhay) — Vice President Jejomar Binay said local and national laws must be harmonized to ensure orderly business operations in the country.
In a speech before the delegates of the Banyan Tree Leadership Forum at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington D.C., Binay said: “We must keep our promise to maintain a clean and transparent government with a stable policy regime into 2016 and beyond.”
He noted the Philippines must “further liberalize” its economy to improve the country’s competitiveness as well as to attract local and foreign investments.
“We must cure the policy and infrastructure misalignments that emerge as we cascade our gains to the grassroots,” he said.
He also said the country needs a true open skies policy complete with an aggressive airport development program.
He also sought reforms in the electric power industry and the modernization of the agriculture sector.
Members of the administration have been lobbying for changes in the economic provisions to allow more foreign investments.
Binay has not announced his position on calls to change the constitution.
Binay recently topped a list of presidential aspirants as he garnered 40% of the nod of 1,200 respondents in a Pulse Asia survey.
The second top pick went to neophyte Senator Grace Poe who got 15%. Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas, Binay’s rival in the vice president race in 2010, was a far fifth with 6%.(MNS)