Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Philippines to Japan H.E. Mylene Garcia-Albano, Secretary of Labor and Employment Bienvenido Laguesma, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the Philippines H.E. Kazuhiko Koshikawa, First Lady of the Philippines Louise Araneta-Marcos, Toyota Motor Corporation Chairman Akio Toyoda, TMP Chairman Alfred V. Ty, TMC Vice Chairman Shigeru Hayakawa, and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. President and CEO Kenichi Hori.
In the last three and a half decades, TMP has accomplished significant milestones in automotive manufacturing and sales and its mission to be a major contributor to national development. Today, the company is the industry leader and ranked 10th in Toyota’s global markets. TMP has locally produced over 1.03 million units, delivered a cumulative total of 2.24 million units to Filipino homes nationwide, and received over 16 million units for servicing at Toyota dealer workshops nationwide.
But Ty also expressed his practical viewpoint to keep as many options as possible to pursue sustainable mobility seamlessly. “We will make sure that when we transition to full-electric vehicles, we are able to preserve jobs in our factory and assure our customers that they will have peace of mind – and fun – using their electrified vehicles. Electrification is the way to the future. I am encouraged by the moves of the government to enable a more rapid pace of adaption,” he added.
“This strategic decision to focus on transmissions and parts exports rather than final assembly has worked to our advantage. It is what has allowed us to be successful here, unlike some of our competitors. Personally, I believe that we need to come together, as an industry, to develop local suppliers here in the Philippines,” Toyoda explained.MEANWHILE, TMP also unveiled the concept design of its ‘Toyota Mobility LCV’ model – the Toyota Next Generation Tamaraw.