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Pamalakaya eyes probe of 7 more deals with China

The left-leaning fisherfolk alliance group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) on Friday urged lawmakers to conduct separate investigations on seven more deals signed by the Philippine and Chinese governments last January 15, 2007, stressing that all these agreements could have all the marks of corruption and onerous loan agreements with China to the disadvantage of the Filipino people.

Citing a briefing paper prepared by independent think tank Ibon Foundation Inc., Pamalakaya national chair Fernando Hicap said China agreed to fund a number of infrastructure development projects of the Macapagal- Arroyo administration that cost more than US$1.1 billion or roughly P 49.5 billion based on the current exchange rate of P45.50 against the US dollar.

Hicap said the RP-China projects the members of the Senate and House of Representatives should jointly or separately investigate are the following:

• Northrail Project Phase 1, Section 2- to be undertaken by NLRC that would entail the extension of Northrail from Malolos to Clark covering 48 kilometers. The cost of the project is $ 673.67 M

• Main Line South Railway Project Phase 1- to be undertaken by the Philippine National Railway. It seeks the rehabilitation of the 77.4 km section of railroad line from Calamba to Lucena City. The project cost is $ 314.8 M.

• Non-Intrusive Container Inspection System Project Phase 2- to be undertaken by the Bureau of Customs. It involves the procurement, installation and operation of 20 mobile x-ray machines. The project would cost the Philippine government $ 115 M.

• Laiban Dam Project to be headed by the MWSS. This $ 1 B project calls for the construction of a concrete dam, intake structures, hydropower plants and other structures.

• Metro Manila Skyway Stages 2 and 3 to be undertaken by NDC. The project cost is $ 633.54 M. It calls for the construction of an elevated expressway link to South Luzon expressway and the North Luzon expressway.

• Angat Water Utilization and Aqueduct Improvement Project Phase 2 to be undertaken by the MWSS. The project cost is $ 63.58 M and it would involve the construction of an 11.5 km new aqueduct to secure existing raw water supply in Metro Manila.

• Upgrading of Laoag International Airport Extension Project to be headed by the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC). It will focus on the upgrading and modernization of airport’s various facilities.

Citing the same Ibon study, Pamalakaya’s Hicap said, in the loan agreement of the Northrail Project, China has the sole authority to determine the payment schedule; the right to impose immediate payments even before the project begins; and it places China's laws as the governing laws for the agreement and that the Philippine government irrevocably and unconditionally waives its immunity from any suit or judgment arising from the contract.

“There’s no doubt these agreements have the destructive elements present in the controversial ZTE broadband deal. Aside from high crimes of corruption, the Philippine government has practically surrendered the country’s national sovereignty and patrimony to their Chinese corporate clients in the name of China’s global exportation of surplus capital through onerous and one-sided investment agreements,” Pamalakaya said. #

posted by: GerryCorpuz at 03:08 | link | comments |

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