00:00Of course, we are very, very proud because we have a special guest today.
00:05He was not a newscaster back then, but now he is serving as an undersecretary of the Office of the Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs.
00:17Our former PTV News anchor, Undersecretary Joey Gilas is here with us.
00:23Good morning!
00:26Welcome back!
00:27Thank you very much. It is a great honor to be part of Rise and Shine Philippines again.
00:35Well, it's our pleasure to have you with us today and we're very proud of you. Congratulations on your new post.
00:41Thank you very much. Of course, such a congratulation has its own responsibility, so let's see.
00:48Okay, let's talk about it this morning.
00:51How was your adjustment? First of all, of course, we are here at PTV4. Our expertise is communication and you also have a job in the private sector.
01:03Now, you are solely in the government. How was the adjustment in your life?
01:09I'd have to say that everything that I have done in the past actually led me to where I am right now.
01:16It was a good combination of my training and my current position in the government.
01:25From the private sector, I learned branding, communications, and marketing.
01:30I learned the discipline of how it is like to be in the private sector.
01:34I know how to do business.
01:37That's why this is a good preparation for my current portfolio, which is investment and economic affairs.
01:46At the same time, as a former broadcast journalist, I was given the chance to have a generalist point of view,
01:54not only in reporting, but also in business, because I have been a business reporter for the longest time.
02:04That's right.
02:05So, because of that, when I stepped up, I was the one who stepped up to enter the government.
02:11I can't say that I had a hard time adjusting, and things are working out smoothly.
02:17So, you are also an expert when it comes to economics, and of course, you also have the knowledge in communications.
02:26That's a really good combination in your office that you are currently in charge of as a USEC.
02:30Now, tell us about the mandate of the office, and what is your duty as a USEC in this office, USEC?
02:36Well, in a nutshell, the Office of the Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs,
02:44its principal objective is to attract investors into investing in the country.
02:51That is trying to convince the world, tell the world, that the Philippines is indeed a conducive place for business.
02:59This is where their businesses will thrive.
03:01This is where their businesses will thrive.
03:04So, part of my duty now, since I am an undersecretary, I echo, I reflect what the secretary does,
03:13is actually to convince the world that we are ready to accept their investment here in our country.
03:22This is a place for them to thrive.
03:25And because of that, one of our goals is to liberalize our policemen
03:32so that it will be easier for businessmen, especially from other countries, to invest here in the Philippines.
03:39This is also what we call on our fellow countrymen who have the desire to invest here in our country,
03:46to invest because the Philippines is now among the busiest investment hubs in Asia.
03:53Not just busiest, but progressive.
03:57We have so much potential in investing, so this is where they should invest.
04:02Well, there's a background in mass media, Usec Joey.
04:06So, information dissemination for our fellow countrymen,
04:09and for the businessmen who are trying to do business here in the Philippines,
04:14what strategy are you planning for this?
04:18Well, this is precisely why my office has been created under the OSAP IEA.
04:23My office is called the Office of the Undersecretary for Strategic Partnerships and Engagements.
04:30I am the one who has been assigned to create partnerships with different key stakeholders.
04:38Our fellow countrymen can even be part of those key stakeholders
04:44because our role as journalists and broadcasters is important
04:51because we are the ones who spread the news about our country.
04:55So, how can we project our country?
04:58There's ease of doing business in the Philippines.
05:04It's good that we are established as an investment hub in Asia.
05:10So, not just with the media, of course,
05:14I will have to strike partnerships with other groups
05:17and make sure that they're engaged with us and eventually hooked to make investments in the country.
05:25So, we are one with you when it comes to spreading information.
05:29Make sure that you help me.
05:32But the travels of our beloved President are also a big help
05:35because our President also travels.
05:38He also says that it's good to invest here in the Philippines.
05:42So, the travels of our beloved President Marcos are a big help.
05:45The President is the country's best salesman.
05:48He is the one who pushes our country
05:52so that the whole world knows that they should invest here.
05:57Investing is important.
06:00When people invest in a country, that will eventually lead to jobs creation.
06:06It will create jobs for millions of Filipinos,
06:10which in turn will help them support their livelihood.
06:13Public and private partnerships are important.
06:17The government won't be able to do it alone
06:19because you have a background in private companies.
06:22How has this helped you in your new responsibilities?
06:27Well, one of the things that we are doing now
06:31and actually one of our biggest contributions
06:36is helping to pass the PPP law.
06:41It was able to replace a 29-year-old build-operate-transfer law
06:46that is now the reason why it allowed us to privatize
06:52the rehabilitation of our airport.
06:55Who would believe that our airport,
06:59which always enters the worst airports in the world,
07:04is now going to be privatized,
07:06is now going to be rehabilitated under private hands?
07:10This was made possible by our office.
07:13That's important because that's our window.
07:15When the tourists come here,
07:17the first thing they see is our surroundings.
07:20And very soon, it's not just going to be our airports here in Manila.
07:25Next on our agenda is, of course,
07:28the same project this time for the Lagindingan Airport
07:31in Misamis Oriental.
07:34Well, we are very proud of you.
07:35I call you Tito Joey, but now I call you Yusek Gilas.
07:39You can still call me Tito.
07:40Can I call you Tito?
07:42Actually, he is my mentor, Tito Joey.
07:45Back then, when I was just joining the pageant,
07:48and of course, here in the mask room.
07:49So let's talk a little about your personal life.
07:53Don't call it a love life.
07:55Roughly last year, you took a break, of course, from newscasting.
08:00What happened and how did you overcome it?
08:04Back in 2009, long before I even joined PTV,
08:10I have been diagnosed to be a chronic kidney disease sufferer.
08:14I have CKD, it runs in the family.
08:18In fact, that's the disease that actually claimed the lives of my mom and my brother.
08:24So, my condition is not simple.
08:28In fact, I'm pre-dialysis stage,
08:31stage 4 out of 5 stages.
08:34Once you reach stage 5, you will be dialysed.
08:37Last year, sometime in June,
08:42when I went for a check-up, the doctor told me,
08:46well, if your condition is not serious,
08:50your kidneys will only last for a year.
08:53It was a wake-up call.
08:55I know I was enjoying my stay, my job as a news anchor,
09:01but somehow, something's gotta give.
09:05I had to choose.
09:06So I said, I will stop reporting
09:09because I have to take my condition seriously.
09:13So what I did was to undergo stem cell treatment.
09:19This is a way to treat diseases
09:23that have been experienced by some of our great personalities,
09:27including some of our presidents who have been affected.
09:32Thankfully, the technology which was originally just available in Germany
09:36has been brought here in the Philippines.
09:38There's EW Villa Medica that actually helped me
09:42to undergo stem cell treatment.
09:46And so, I had to do it.
09:51It may have cost me financially,
09:55but the results are amazing.
09:58The results have been astonishing so far.
10:01I regained my strength.
10:05It improved my other organs.
10:07So there's less stress, less pressure on my kidneys.
10:11And this is why I'd have to say that
10:15I have a strong heart to take on this new role in government
10:19as an undersecretary.
10:20Well, it's good to know that you're all good to know.
10:22And now, you have a big responsibility for the government.
10:25Well, lastly, we're here at PTV
10:28because you're still a part of PTV.
10:29Of course.
10:30We've been celebrating for 50 years.
10:33Do you have a message for our mother network?
10:37Of course, I would even attribute
10:40what I have actually achieved in government here at PTV.
10:47This actually provided me with my first taste
10:50of government service.
10:52This network provided me that experience.
10:54Now, what I've learned is that
10:57the people, especially in times of crisis,
11:02it turns to the government right away
11:04because they want to hear and understand
11:06what the government plans for their lives
11:09in times of crisis.
11:12And PTV is the first touchpoint,
11:17the closest thing to the hearts of the viewers,
11:21because it's right there in their homes.
11:24Right? It's with them.
11:26And I do hope that through the years,
11:30PTV was able to deliver on that,
11:34on providing that service to the people,
11:37serving as the bridge, as the link
11:39between government and the people.
11:43It was able to do it well.
11:46It's a part of what you do every day.
11:51So, aside from thanking PTV,
11:54I'd like to say, I'd like to wish PTV
11:57for it to continue on actually pursuing that service,
12:03the service that it does to the public,
12:05kahit sino pa po ang nasa harap ng kamera
12:08at kung sino man ang namumuno sa istasyong ito.
12:11Well, Usec Joe Wigilas, thank you very much
12:14and congratulations again on your new post.
12:17And thank you for dropping by dito sa,
12:20naging unang tahanan mo rin dito sa Rise and Shine Pilipinas
12:24dahil naging bahagi rin dito ng ating programa
12:27sa Usec Joe Wigilas.
12:29Yan, yan, kasanang namin mag-host pa ulo eh.
12:31Kaso, syempre nagpapagaling si Usec Joe eh.
12:33Pag mayroong mas malakas pa.
12:35Kaya, kaya tongkul yan, ano,
12:36sa kanyang bagong hinahawakan po.
12:37So, thank you again.
12:38Maraming salamat.
12:39My pleasure.
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