WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 128, series of 1993, and Executive Order No. 312, series of 1996, mandated the creation and holding of an exposition to commemorate and celebrate the centennial of the declaration of Philippine independence;

WHEREAS, pursuant to the above-mentioned Executive Orders, the National Centennial Commission (NCC) organized and established the Philippine Centennial Exposition 1998 or Expo Pilipino, which will feature Philippine arts, culture, foreign relations, achievements in economics, trade and business, to be held at the Clark Special Economic Zone;

WHEREAS, the Expo Pilipino Corporation (EPC) was formed to manage and operate the exposition; and

WHEREAS, to ensure the success of the exposition, the NCC and EPC have developed the œExpo Pilipino Family Day  Program;

WHEREAS, the program is aimed at providing every Filipino and his family the opportunity to visit the Expo Pilipino to further cultivate their understanding and appreciation of Philippine arts, culture and achievements thereby enhancing their sense of nationalism and patriotism;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FIDEL V. RAMOS, President of the Republic of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order all heads of departments, bureaus, agencies, government-owned and/or-controlled corporations (GOCCs), government financial institutions (GFIs) and local government units (LGUs) to promote and encourage participation in the Philippine Centennial Exposition 1998 or Expo Pilipino, including the œExpo Pilipino Centennial Family Day  Program, as follows:

Section 1. The Civil Service Commission (CSC) shall initiate, implement and undertake appropriate measures to enable all government workers in the country to avail of a special three-day Centennial Leave with pay at any time from 6 June 1998 through 15 June 1999, to allow them and their families to visit and take part in the exposition.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) shall initiate and devise mechanisms to encourage private sector enterprises in granting similar benefits to their employees in the spirit of nationalism.

Sec. 2. The Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) shall implement, initiate and undertake a parallel program to enable all students in the country to likewise avail of and be entitled to a three-day Centennial Educational Credit at any time from 6 June 1998 through 15 June 1999 to allow them and their families to visit and take part in the exposition.

Sec. 3. All departments, bureaus, GOCCs, GFIs, LGUs and other agencies shall coordinate directly with EPC for the details and scheduling of the œExpo Pilipino Family Day  Program.

Sec. 4. All departments, agencies, offices, GOCCs and LGUs shall provide cooperation and assistance necessary to give effect to this order. For this purpose, they shall issue the appropriate guidelines necessary to implement the objectives of herein order.

Sec. 5. All departments, bureaus, GOCCs, GFIs, LGUs and other government agencies shall submit to the NCC a monthly report on the status of implementation of the œExpo Pilipino Family Day  Program.

Sec. 6. This Administrative Order shall take effect immediately.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 4th day of May, in the Year of Our Lord Nineteen Hundred and Ninety-Eight.

(Sgd.) FIDEL V. RAMOS
President of the Philippines

By the President:
(Sgd.) ALEXANDER P. AGUIRRE
Executive Secretary