MANILA, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has created an office for his Presidential Adviser on Investment and Economic Affairs Frederick D. Go.

The new Office of the Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs (OSAPIEA) is established by virtue of Executive Order Number 49, which was signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on Friday, December 15, and published on Monday, December 18.

Go will have the rank of secretary, per EO 49

As SAPIEA, Go will serve as chairperson of the Economic Development Group (EDG), which consists of numerous government agencies.

Previously, it was the finance chief who oversaw the EDG, but following the release of the EO, Department of Finance Secretary (DOF) Benjamin Diokno will slide down to vice chair, alongside National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan.

Go will also supervise the following agencies on behalf of the President “to ensure effective and efficient implementation of their respective priority initiatives”:

• NEDA
• DOF
• Department of Budget and Management
• Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)
• Other attached agencies, such as Board of Investments, Philippine Economic Zone Authority, and Securities and Exchange Commission

He will also sit as member of the following:

• NEDA Board
• Investment Coordination Committee
• Social Development Committee
• Committee on Infrastructure
• Development Budget Coordination Committee

Go’s aim: Philippines as top investment destination

A press release from the Palace said Go’s office aims to make the Philippines a “top investment destination.” The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) added that the OSAPIEA will ensure that investment pledges secured abroad materialize.

The release of the EO comes as Malacañang boasts of the P14.5 billion in total investment commitments that the Marcos administration secured in its latest visit to Japan. Go added that P169 billion in investment pledges from Marcos’ first Japan trip in February have been actualized.

Other powers and functions of Go, as per the memo, include:

• Provide the President with relevant and strategic advice on economic concerns
• Identify priority programs, activities, and projects in the Philippine Development Plan 2023 to 2028
• Speed up interagency action to meet key targets

Go with the Marcos administration since start of the year

Go officially became presidential adviser in January 2023. Part of Go’s team when he held this post was Rafael “Joel” Consing Jr., who is now president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Maharlika Investment Corporation.

Rumors circulated back in October that Go was to replace Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual as part of a supposed Cabinet revamp.

The Robinsons Land Corporation website still lists Go as its president and chief executive officer, and it is unclear if he will step down from the post to focus on his Cabinet secretary-level post.

A management engineering graduate from Ateneo de Manila University, Go has had an illustrious career in the corporate world, holding top posts in Altus Property Ventures, Robinsons Recreation Corporation, Robinsons Bank, and RL Commercial REIT.

He was also a director of Cebu Air Inc., Manila Electric Company, JG Summit Petrochemical Corporation, JG Summit Olefins Corporation, and Cebu Light Industrial Park. – Rappler.com

(Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article misstated that Go shared the title presidential adviser on economic affairs with Rafael “Joel” Consing Jr.)