Best Posts in Thread: 174 Island Stakeholder Meeting-Second Chance for Negros

Despite the horn-blowing of a few supporters, the project is so insane for so many reasons in a 3rd Class Component City that this senior cynic believes that it is a fake, so that when the real agenda is proposed, smart people will be so worn out that there will be no opposition. Like the same project, but built inland on the diversion road.

If Dumaguete's government spent as much energy on fixing this disintegrating city's problems of traffic, infrastructure, unemployment, failing businesses, electricity distribution, transport (what public transit?), sewers, we'd be way ahead.

 

Actually, previously a foreign investor can hold 40% ownership in a corporation that owns land in the Philippines. A foreign investor can hold 100% of the buildings and businesses if the business complies with the minimum investment on the negative list.

For example if a foreign investor wanted to compete with Lee Plaza they would have to invest 2.5 M USD. Then they could own the business the building the lease of the land and 40% ownership of the sub-corporation that owns the land.

A lot of the rules about land ownership are in the constitution and cannot be readily changed by Duterte.

 

this is going to be sorted in one foul swoop all plans will be drawn up in Chinese problem solved, Chinese are experts at this sort of stuff will have groups that work 24/7. they will set up there own little communes and will not mix with the locals as they won't have a word of English between them (that is the ones at the end of the shovel and hammers) Chinese liquor and cigarettes will be brought in and they will be paid in RMB and most of if not all the materials will be shipped in the only people who will make money from this will be the poly tichians and the Chinese of course and unless its ran by others, other than filipinos on completion it won't last long and the sea will just reclaim it

 

I totally agree with your sentiments but the cynic in me suggests that these smaller, far more important and achievable, projects wouldn't inflate the assets of those in the relevant positions of authority nearly as much.

 

Scientists warn vs ‘smart city’ reclamation in Dumaguete

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1476540/scientists-warn-vs-smart-city-reclamation-in-dumaguete

The article mostly writes about damage to the coral reef (which, apparently, will be relocated???) and the potential cost of that ("it would take three years to determine if the corals that were transferred to another location survived, and 30 years to find out if they have fully recovered. Making sure the corals survived would cost P2.7 billion, while maintaining them until they fully recovered could amount to P27 billion") plus the possible collapse of 'Smart City' in an earthquake. ("Estacion also cited the active Negros Oriental fault line, which will make the reclamation project vulnerable to earthquakes. “When an earthquake will shake the land, it will cause loosening and displacement of sediments, causing pore spaces, thus destabilizing the soil. So, if you have a weight over that, it will sink,” she said. Estacion recalled the liquefaction or the sinking of land areas in Guihulngan City in Negros Oriental when a strong earthquake shook parts of Negros Island in 2012.")

"Another scientist, Lemnuel Aragones, professor of the University of the Philippines Diliman and former director of the school’s Institute of Environmental Science and Meteorology, also asked the city to reconsider the project.

He said the “dump and fill” project would also affect the water’s “productivity” that ensures food for many marine animals including dolphins and whales in the nearby Tañon Strait, the largest marine protected area in the Philippines and home to many species of whales and dolphins.

“There have already been so many environmental disasters due to miscalculations in the Philippines. Do not let this be another one. Please do the right thing to ensure the continuity of our ecological integrity,” Aragones said in a recent letter to Dumaguete Mayor Felipe Remollo."

 

Anyone doing business with the PRC needs to think long and hard if that business is really going to benefit them or the Chinese. They want to build a playground to bring in income for themselves not the hosting country. Too many of Negros' natural resources will be destroyed and local workers will not be employed beyond the construction phase if even for that. The PI has a lot to lose once the PRC gets their foothold on them. This is an invader you can see coming. Get it together and rise up Kuya!

 

Look at what they have done to Sihanoukville in the last 5 years.

https://skift.com/2020/03/09/cambodias-sihanoukville-pays-price-for-gambling-itself-away/

 

All of the China bashing distracts from the Smart City discussion and should be in another thread.

Most of the Filipino/Chinese here in Dumaguete originally came from Fujian China, whose families supported Chiang Kai-Shek fighting the communists until 1949 and were exiled to Formosa from which they settled in the Philippines. Not having family names anglicanized gave them the opportunity to use names that could be written and pronounced.

Du Ek Sam, Uy, Matiao, Lee, Gothong among others are local giants of commerce and construction and are all of Chinese descent and are well respected in the Philippines.

The investor is an individual who is of Chinese descent who as part of the due diligence will be examined. All moneys sent to the Philippines will be scrutinized by the Central Bank of China and if obtained legally to the Central Bank of the Philippines satisfaction sent as Pisos from the Central Bank of China's foreign reserves.

Delays due to legal challenges are possible and even if everything goes as planned the Commission on Audit could find technical issues to parts of the proposal jeopardizing political careers.

The bold and the brave Dreamers face great risk.

shakey

 

Absolute pie in the sky IMO.