President to 'introduce' investment fund to Middle East in Riyadh trip

MANILA (UPDATE) — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday said the Maharlika Investment Fund would be "operational by the end of the year" despite the suspension of its implementation.

Marcos suspended the implementation of the Maharlika Investment Fund Law, pending a review of its Implementing Rules and Regulations.

"The organization of the Maharlika Fund proceeds apace. And what I have done though, is that we have found more improvements we can make, specifically to the organizational structure of the Maharlika Fund," the President said.

"The concept of the Maharlika fund as a sovereign fund, an investment fund...remains a good one and we are still committed to having it operational by the end of the year," he continued.

Marcos said the public should not misinterpret the suspension as “a judgment of the rightness or wrongness of the Maharlika fund.”

“On the contrary, we are just finding ways to make it as close to perfect and ideal as possible, and that is what we have done,” he said, adding that the decision was made in consultation with the country’s economic managers and people who would be involved in the fund.

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“That is why their inputs have been very important and that is why we are going to utilize them to make it a better organization,” he said.

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RIYADH TRIP

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Marcos made the remark prior to his departure to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to attend the ASEAN-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit on Friday.

He said "important aspects" of the trip included introducing the Maharlika Investment Fund to the Middle East.

In his departure speech at the Villamor Air Base in Pasay City, Marcos said he would also discuss with ASEAN and GCC leaders “the challenges of major geopolitical developments and the comprehensive and concrete enhancement of our security, economic, and socio-cultural collaboration.”

He said the summit would “serve as an important platform for the Philippines to highlight the need for cooperation in energy and food security, logistics and supply chains, digital transformation, the free flow of goods, people, and services, as well as the enhancement and protection of the rights of overseas workers.”

“I would like to point out that this is a particularly important conference because this is the first interaction between ASEAN and the GCC, both of whom are vibrant regions in terms of economic developments for the globe. This is why the Philippines needs to be part of this discussion,” Marcos said.

“It gives us, the Philippines a unique opportunity to advance our priorities in ASEAN under the ASEAN-GCC framework, while forging closer cooperation between the two dynamic regional organizations.”

Marcos said he would emphasize his government’s “advocacy for a rules-based international order to maintain peace, security, and stability in our regions.”

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The Philippine leader said he would meet with the Filipino community in Riyadh to “share with them important developments in the Philippines and to thank them for their invaluable contributions.”

According to Marcos, GCC countries, which are comprised of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, are home to an estimated 2.2 million Filipinos working in critical fields.

“We will see to it that our constructive engagement with ASEAN and our partners will continue to serve our national interest and the well-being of the Filipino people,” he said.

Meanwhile, the ASEAN-GCC Summit will also be important for the Philippines, he said, since this would be the first interaction between the ASEAN and GCC.

"We will see to it that our constructive engagement with ASEAN and our partners will continue to serve our national interest and the well-being of the Filipino people," he said.

The President will only be in Riyadh from Oct. 19 to 20, the Department of Foreign Affairs earlier said.