CLARK FREEPORT – “We want to make Clark a logistics hub but you cannot make Clark a logistics hub without a business environment and a habitable society.”
Thus, said Clark Development Corp. (CDC) President and CEO Arthur P. Tugade during an interview with Punto at the Office of the President here last week.
“Kumbinasyon ho ng tatlong programa yan (It’s a combination of three programs),” Tugade said on how he intends to make Clark the catalyst for development not only for Luzon but for the entire country.
“We have to create the business environment. A habitable society that can really help you and a place that you can enjoy like a tourism destination,” Tugade explained.
“Dapat nandidito ang negosyo kasi ano ang ilo-logistics mo kung walang negosyo (Business should be here otherwise what good is a logistics hub without business),” Tugade said.
“Kung walang negosyo hindi pupunta ang eroplano, walang movement. So predicate after predicate yan and importante pakita natin ang kompiyansa ng mga tao na dapat pumunta sila rito. Papano maipapakita na may kompyansa sila dito?
Yung kultura honest at concern (If there is no business, planes will not come here, there’s no movement. So there should be predicate after predicate and it’s important that we can show confidence in doing business here. How do we show confidence? With a culture of honesty and concern),” Tugade explained.
He said at CDC you must have the competence, you must be daring and caring. That’s the real meaning of CDC, he added – competence, daring and caring.
He explained further that to entice good business here there should be no monkey business so that people will come here not with their mouths but with their wallets in their pockets so that it can grow.
‘Pag meron na ngayong basic predicate then you can ask the airlines (If the basic predicate is set, then you can ask the airlines to come),” said Tugade.
“Bakit wala sa Subic e ang ganda-ganda ng pwerto doon? Walang negosyo kaya hindi pumupunta doon ang mga shipping companies maski sabihin mo na shipping center ka kung wala kang negosyo hindi dadating yung barko (Why is there is nothing in Subic when the port there is very beautiful? There is no business that’s why shipping companies don’t go there even if you say it’s a shipping center if there’s no business the ships won’t come),” Tugade said.
Even if you say you are a logistics center if there is no business no planes will ever come here. Complimentary to good business for planes is that here in Clark we are on our third runway, said Tugade.
“So basically what’s the direction? Set the predicate for business here and once it is there you can pursue their logistics hub. If you go to the logistics hub, make the community habitable. The trust, the total persona of the businessman – pleasure, education, leisure and enjoyment.”
“I can do all that but I don’t know how long I will last here, I can be fired next week or next year,” Tugade said with a laugh. “That’s why I hit with full force the culture – respect, honesty, smile and punctuality because that can be brought home unlike if I make a road which you can’t bring home after work.”
“Pero yung pagmamahal sa kalikasan, magtanim ka ng gulay dadalhin mo sa bakuran mo yan (But the love of the environment, cultivating vegetables you can always bring that with you in your own space),” said Tugade.
He said he did something to change the culture of the CDC workers in their provident fund. He said instead of giving away traditional drinking glasses and cups he gave away bank passbooks with P100 deposits to entice employees to save.
The others don’t like the idea he said, “but what can I do I gave you a vehicle to learn how to save. Can you open a bank account with only P100? No way Joe,” Tugade remarked.
