Thank you very much Ramon for your kind and gracious exaggerations about me. Going through the introduction gave me an opportunity to go down memory lane and I suddenly feel older and more tired than I did when I first came into the hall.
To Ed Francisco of the MAP, to all of the Officers, Boards of Governors, and Members of the MAP and MBC, and to all the other friends -- ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon.
I’m very happy to be here. I was looking forward to this occasion with keen anticipation as a homecoming of sorts. I note many familiar and friendly faces, acquaintances in the audience -- people whose paths I’ve crossed in the many roles that I have had in public life as well as in the private sector. I looked at my records and saw that the last time I addressed you my theme was "It can't be business as usual"; I find that that dictum is as relevant today as it was then.
I approach my talk before you today somewhat like a road-show presentation or a shareholders’ meeting -- where management discusses the organization -- its structure and operations, analyzes its challenges, indicates the opportunities that it sees, presents its plans and shows how it will execute these plans.
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