Singaporean ambassador offers to help Philippine city to become 'Singapore-like'
A local mayor in central Philippines wants to make his city world class like Singapore
Singapore’s ambassador to the Philippines Gerard Ho Wei Hong expressed his support for Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama's vision of transforming the central Philippine city into a world-class destination with efficient transportation systems and state-of-the-art infrastructure.
During his courtesy call with Rama at the Cebu City Hall on Monday (13 February), Ho expressed his willingness to share his experiences to help realise Rama's vision, saying Singapore has companies that can offer solutions to support Cebu City's transformation.
“Name it and we have companies that can help you with the solutions,” Ho said, according to a report by SunStar Philippines, as Rama showed him a Singapore-inspired promotional videos pushing for the city’s plans to attain the same status as a progressive and prosperous city.
Building a cruise terminal
Ho recommended building a cruise terminal, similar to Singapore's, to boost the local tourism and economy.
“You have a beautiful city … and a beautiful province, you should have a cruise terminal,” the ambassador said.
‘Singapore-like’ vision for Cebu
Rama revealed his plans to transform the city during his inaugural speech as the newly-elected mayor on 30 June 2022.
Among his immediate plans is housing homeless locals, city hall employees, and informal settlers by building 200 medium-rise buildings similar to Singapore's Housing Development Board's (HDB) flats.
Ho commended Rama's plans and shared Singapore's challenges during its early days as a city-state, stating that they had learned from their mistakes.
“We have made a lot of mistakes, and we learned from it,” Ho said on the challenges Singapore faced during its nascent period as a city-state.
As a token of appreciation, Rama presented Ho with a golden key that symbolises opening all doors in Cebu.
Do you have a story tip? Email: sgnews.tips@yahooinc.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter. Also check out our Southeast Asia, Food, and Gaming channels on YouTube.
