PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. promised in his New Year's Day message to eliminate rules that obstruct the implementation of projects in 2024. This was the same commitment he gave during a roundtable meeting with top executives of Japanese semiconductor, electronics and wiring harness companies in February 2023, although phrased differently.

'We will continue to purge government of rules that slow the delivery of public services because when projects get delayed, progress is denied [to] our people. And this commitment to efficiency and service will extend to documents and licenses because service delayed is also service denied,' he said in a recorded message released on January 1.