Dominguez accuses Phil. Star of printing ‘outright lies,’ ‘speculation’

DEPARTMENT of Finance (DOF) secretary, Carlos Dominguez, last April 2, 2021, came out with a strongly-worded reaction to an article that appeared at the Philippine Star the day before where it accused the Philippine government of entering into project contracts with China that are “riddled with secretive conditions.”

The finance chief’s 7-page letter, addressed to the paper’s top management headed by its president and chief executive officer (CEO), Miguel Belmonte, specifically refers to the article, ‘China projects in Philippines found riddled with secretive conditions’ was in the byline of Ian Nicolas Cigaral and Prinz Magtulis.

The article, Dominguez stressed, “propounded several inaccuracies and falsehoods in connection with Chinese-funded projects in the Philippines.”

The article had relied heavily on a report released last March 31, 2021, by ‘AidData’ a “think tank” based in the United States “being run under the auspices of the William & Mary Global Research Institute, Kiel Institute for the World Economy, Center for Global Development, and Peterson Institute for International Economics,” Dominguez noted.

And we may add here that a browse at the Internet showed the think tank is also partly-funded by the Agency for International Development (USAID), which is one of the conduits of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in conducting black propaganda and other subversive activities against any country targeted for destabilization by the US government.

Further Internet search would also show that AidData and Mary Global Research are both based in the state of Virginia, where the CIA is also headquartered.

For “countless times,” Dominguez told the Phil. Star that “Chinese-funded ODA projects pursued by the Duterte administration were negotiated to promote the national interest and with due regard to all our laws and regulations,” particularly referring to the Chico River Pump Irrigation Project, the Kaliwa Dam Project and, the PNR South Long Haul Project, that were cited in the article.

The finance chief must have been reminding the newspaper that nearly similar articles sowing intrigues to the projects funded by loans from China have been coming out in the Philippine mainstream media as far back as 2019, and which he had already explained the benefits to the Philippines back then.

A quick browse at the Internet would show the think tank is also partly-funded by the Agency for International Development (USAID), which is one of the conduits of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in conducting black propaganda and other subversive activities against any country targeted for destabilization by the US government.

He also stressed there was “no hidden security features” for the financing agreements for the loans as these can be readily accessed thru the department’s website “for the public to scrutinize.”

Dominguez added the terms are “consistent with other financing agreements which we have signed with countries such as Japan, Korea, and France.”

Dominguez also branded as “speculative” the article’s claim that the government was only forced to disclose the details of the contracts sometime in 2019 after being pressured by Congress.

“This is clearly inaccurate and speculative. When the contracts were negotiated in 2018 and 2019, these already included provisions which provide that the contract details may be disclosed if ‘required by any applicable Philippine laws, regulations, and rules, or by order of any courts, tribunals, or agencies of competent jurisdiction, or relevant regulatory bodies.’

“In fact, the DOF wasted no time in posting and divulging the contracts in their entirety in its website to comply with the public’s right to information enshrined in the Constitution and to invite public comments on these contracts. No pressure from anyone was necessary for this to happen as this was contractually provided for,” Dominguez explained further.

Dominguez also debunked the claim of AidData, and merely mouthed by the Phil. Star article, that with respect to the Kaliwa Dam Project, China has demanded for the opening of a “separate bank account” to ensure loan repayment “at all times.”

“While it is reasonable to require that profits from the MWSS project (Kaliwa Dam) be earmarked for interest payment and debt servicing, there is no other contract that mandates the opening of a bank account with sufficient balance for repayment at all times contrary to the claim in the Philstar article,” Dominguez said.

“Debt servicing, including interest payment of these Chinese loans, goes through a process similar to loans from Japan, Korea, the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank. Hence, there is no need for a separate account or a holdout to ensure prompt payment,” he added.

Dominguez also dismissed the claim that because China is not a member of the so-called ‘Paris Club,’ loans that it granted cannot be renegotiated.

“Also, the claim that Chinese loans cannot be restructured because China does not subscribe to Paris Club initiatives is likewise nebulous and unfounded. All loans can be restructured through bilateral agreement, regardless of whether the creditor country is a Paris Club member or not,” Dominguez said.

“The fact that China is not a member of the Paris Club does not mean that the Philippines is precluded from asking for a loan restructuring if this is required by the circumstances. In fact, there is no provision in the Philippine agreements which prohibits debt relief or restructuring,” he added.

In the end, Dominguez said it was the Phil. Star article that was “riddled with inconsistencies, half-truths, and outright lies.”

“We have performed our constitutional duty of disclosing all financing or loan agreements entered into with bilateral and multilateral partners.

“It is incumbent on the free press to do their research thoroughly before proceeding with unfounded allegations.

“Professionalism dictates that claims such as those in the Philstar article be first verified before being published, as pure speculation or conjecture cannot be the hallmark of press freedom,” Dominguez reminded the newspaper further.

For its part, the Phil. Star apologized to Dominguez, adding the erroneous article had already been taken down “as a way to address the matter, which the company apologizes for.”