Marcos thanks Ramon Ang for flood-control offer, notes it’s not new
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday welcomed tycoon Ramon Ang’s offer to help address Metro Manila’s flood problem.
After meeting with Metro Manila mayors, Ang said San Miguel Corp. (SMC) could help solve the capital’s flooding issues. The statement came after critics blamed some of SMC’s infrastructure projects for worsening floods.
Asked for his thoughts on the offer, Marcos replied, "thank you."
"What else? What else can you say? This is… why from the very beginning, I always said the private sector needs to be part of everything – of our national development," Marcos said at a press briefing.
The president said SMC’s projects have been satisfactory but noted Ang’s proposal was not new.
"There is still another side to his proposal. And the other side of his proposal, ‘I will fix the flooding problem, I will desilt the areas here in Metro Manila anyway,’ but the mayors, the LGUs, have to take care of the garbage problem," Marcos said.
Pushback. Ang’s pledge has drawn criticisms.
In a statement Monday, the group Advocates of Science and Technology for the People (AGHAM) criticized the SMC chief, citing a Global Witness report that said projects such as the New Manila International Airport may have worsened flooding in nearby communities.
"As long as infrastructure projects are being built left and right with little foresight, as long as quarrying and mining operations decimate nearby watersheds, as long as Metro Manila citizens are forced or made to stay in naturally flood-prone areas, the problem will persist," AGHAM said.
"As engaged scientists, our duty is to identify the problems so that they can be solved. The problem in this case, Ramon Ang, is you," the group added.
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