| Cancel Laiban Dam deal, MWSS urged |
|
|
|
| Written by IBON Foundation, Inc. | |
| Thursday, 20 August 2009 | |
|
The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) should stop the alleged joint-venture proposal of San Miguel Corp. (SMC) as well as the bidding process that will revive the Laiban dam project because it is marked by allegations of corruption and cronyism, said research group IBON Foundation.
A report by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) revealed that San Miguel Bulk Water Co. submitted an unsolicited joint-venture proposal to build and operate the P52-billion Laiban Dam in Tanay, Rizal, but the proposal reportedly favors alleged Arroyo crony SMC chair Danding Cojuangco. The deadline for rival bidders of SMC is on July 8, but the PCIJ report said that MWSS only made an announcement on July 2, making the project almost a done deal for SMC. In truth, the Arroyo administration has been trying to revive the Laiban dam as early as 2003 when it listed the project for Asian Development Bank (ADB) loans, and later for a $910-million-loan from China. As in many anomalous infrastructure projects under the Arroyo government that are marked by allegations of corruption such as the NBN-ZTE, IMPSA, Piatco, Northrail, World Bank road projects etc., the Laiban project could possibly contain concessions that may prove profitable for a few Arroyo allies. The SMC proposal is the latest attempt to revive the project after the MWSS abandoned it in 1989, but the deal is reportedly lacking in available public data. According to IBON, the MWSS should fully disclose details of the joint-venture deal especially since the impact of the project on water rates will be effectively shouldered by consumers. The group fears that the deal might contain questionable details such as a guaranteed fee provision similar to the controversial CE-Casecnan Multipurpose Project which required government to pay for 20 years whether or not water is actually delivered. Moreover, the cost of rehabilitating the Laiban dam includes the displacement of about 10,000 residents, including Dumagat communities. The project will also affect around 27,800 hectares of ancestral and agricultural lands. IBON also questions the supposed water shortage as a reason behind the Laiban dam revival. In the first place, the perceived water shortage in Metro Manila should have already been addressed if private concessionaires Manila Water Company Inc. and Maynilad Water Services Inc. only fulfilled their long-standing obligation to improve the infrastructure of the water system. IBON, a convenor of the Water for the People Network, says that, above all, the joint-venture deal should be cancelled because it allows private corporations to manage the Laiban dam and further gain control over the country’s water resources. |
| Next > |
|---|
