Philippines goes cap in hand to China as water shortage bites
- Delegation from Manila lands in Beijing to seek loans and unlock funds for controversial China-backed Kaliwa dam
- Critics say the Duterte government has engineered the water shortage to gain backing for the dam, which indigenous tribes oppose
The delegation, led by Duterte’s Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, will meet Chinese Vice-President Wang Qishan and officials at the Ministry of Commerce, China’s Export-Import Bank and China International Development Cooperation Agency, which reviews foreign aid projects. They will also brief potential investors from the private sector.
The trip comes amid the most severe water shortage to have hit the Philippine capital in the past decade, with dozens of districts having gone days without water. However, it is likely to prove controversial in some quarters, as critics believe the water shortage has been engineered by the Duterte government as a ploy to win support for the long-stalled Chinese-funded Kaliwa Dam Project. The project, which has been shelved for decades, is controversial partly because Duterte asked China to fund it rather than put it to public tender. It is also opposed by indigenous communities, who stand to be displaced, and by NGOs and the Catholic Church, who question its safety.