(UPDATE) SUPPORT for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s "Bagong Pilipinas (New Philippines)" brand of governance continued to pour in ahead of its kickoff rally at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila on Sunday, Malacañang said on Friday.

In a statement, Presidential Communications Secretary Cheloy Garafil said a coalition of businessmen, civic leaders and employers vowed to support Marcos "in his efforts to shore up the economy under the Bagong Pilipinas brand of governance."

"Led by Jose D. Lina, the Buklod Bayani Coalition (BBC) entered into a memorandum of agreement (MoA) with Secretary Frederick Go, Office of the Special Assistant for Investment and Economic Affairs (Ospaiea), and Secretary Ernesto Perez, director of the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), to help and assist the government in the delivery of services to the public," Garafil said.

The memorandum was signed during a forum workshop at the Manila Hotel on Wednesday, which was attended by prominent business leaders and members of the diplomatic corps.

Go and Perez signed on behalf of the ARTA, with businessman Guillermo Luz, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Asian Institute of Management, witnessing the event.

Lina said the Marcos government "is doing its best to shore up our economy, create jobs and livelihood opportunities for the people and achieve the dream of a Bagong Pilipino."

The Buklod Bayani coalition, made up of several civic organizations, employers federation, exporters federation with the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and the International Chamber of Commerce Philippines, will "mobilize a nationwide network to assist ARTA in ensuring that doing business in the Philippines becomes easier and that government delivery of services is efficient," Lina said.

He said the coalition "shall help ARTA identify bottlenecks, especially red tape and bureaucratic inefficiency, so they are addressed, removed and rectified immediately. Consequently, business will grow and the economy."

"Much more needs to be done. We, the citizens, have to share our time, talent and (treasure) to help our government realize the set goals and dreams," he added.

During the forum, Perez mentioned the ongoing initiatives of ARTA and Ospaiea, working over the pronouncement of the Department of Trade and Industry that the foreign visits of Marcos have garnered around P4 trillion worth of investments.

Go agreed with Perez that the biggest promoters for the country are the existing investors.

"Make happy investors and make them our spokespeople to the rest of the world why investing [in] the Philippines is a wonderful experience. And apart from that, all moves are towards promoting more domestic and foreign investments in the Philippines," Go said.

Sunday's rally will start at 6 p.m. and the President is expected to attend.

Various artists will perform on stage beginning at 3 p.m.

The kickoff rally will be livestreamed nationwide.

Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin "Benhur" Abalos Jr. has issued a memorandum "strongly" urging all barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan officials in the National Capital Region, Central Luzon and Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon), as well as DILG regional, provincial and city officers in those regions, to participate in the launching of the "Bagong Pilipinas" campaign.

In a circular issued on January 19 but made public only on Friday, Abalos also encouraged each local government unit (LGU) to monitor the expected number of participants and to accomplish the actual attendance sheet before their arrival at the venue.

He also urged the participants from NCR, Bulacan, Pampanga, Cavite, Rizal and Laguna to take photos of the event for posting on their personal Facebook pages and the social media accounts of the local government units using the hashtag #BagongPilipinasLaunching.

Although the pre-program activities will start at 2 p.m., Abalos urged village and SK officials to attend and witness the Serbisyo Caravan that will commence at 9 a.m.

He said all participants must wear white polo, t-shirt, or uniform of their respective villages to the event.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said it will activate its traffic personnel, road emergency groups, sidewalk clearing operations, towing and impounding, and other units for the kickoff rally.

The MMDA will deploy 914 personnel to assist in traffic management and extend assistance to motorists and the general public.

The MMDA earlier announced that some roads in Manila, particularly in the vicinity of Quirino Grandstand, will be closed for the event.

It said roads that will be closed from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday include Roxas Boulevard, from United Nations Avenue to Padre Burgos Avenue; both sides of T.M. Kalaw from Roxas Boulevard to Taft Avenue; both sides of P. Burgos Avenue and Finance Road, Ma. Orosa Street and Bonifacio Drive from Anda Circle to P. Burgos Avenue.

The MMDA advised motorists to avoid Rizal Park and all roads leading to the area and take alternate routes.

Vehicles going northbound from Roxas Boulevard must turn right onto Quirino Avenue, or UN Avenue, then turn left onto Taft Avenue to reach their destination.

Vehicles going southbound, from R-10 going to Bonifacio Drive, going to Anda Circle, must turn left onto Soriano Avenue, turn right onto Muralla Street, turn left onto Magallanes Drive, and turn right onto P. Burgos Avenue to Taft Avenue to destination.

Trucks going to North Harbor from the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx), must head straight to Osmeña Highway and turn right onto Quirino Avenue, straight onto Nagtahan Street, going onto Lacson Avenue, turning left onto Yuseco Street, straight to Capulong Street, and turning right onto R-10 to their destination.

Trucks coming from the Parañaque City area must turn right onto Quirino Avenue to Nagtahan Street, then Lacson Avenue to their destination.

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