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SA gitna ng kabi-kabilang alegasyon ng irregularidad, iminungkahi ni House Deputy Minority Leader at Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Partylist Rep. Leila de Lima ang paglulunsad ng isang “congressional investigation in aid of legislation” sa konstruksyon ng Kaliwa Dam Project, na nasa katimugang bahagi ng Sierra Madre mountain range.
Para kay de Lima, kailangan ng isang “full and urgent inquiry” sa nasabing proyekto, dala na rin sa sinasabing mga paglabag sa umiiral na batas at ang paglapastangan umano sa karapatan ng mga mamamayang apektado ng proyekto.
“In recent months, we have all seen the cost of corruption in flood-control projects: homes washed away, livelihoods destroyed, lives lost. Malinaw ang mensahe ng taumbayan: kapag may anomalya, kailangan ng sagot; kapag may kapabayaan, kailangan ng pananagutan. And when billions of pesos and the safety of communities are at stake, Congress cannot sit in comfortable silence,” saad ni de Lima sa iniahing House Resolution 538.
“There is a need to seriously investigate the Kaliwa Dam Project—from its funding source and its process of securing permits to its construction and its overall impacts on the environment and the community—and to prevent similar infrastructure projects from being proposed, funded, and implemented if these allegations are proven true,” dagdag pa niya.
Ang Kaliwa Dam Project, na tinatawag din New Centennial Water Source – Kaliwa Dam Project (NCWS-KDP), ay proyekto ng Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) na paggawa ng 73.3-meter Kaliwa Dam, kasama ang 27.7-kilometer conveyance tunnel, para makapag-suplay ito ng karagdagang 600 million liters ng tubig kada araw sa Metro Manila at mga kalapit na lalawigan partikular ang Bulacan, Cavite, at Rizal.
Masasakop nito ang mga Sitio Kiborosa, Barangay Magsaysay, Infanta, Quezon at Sitio Baykuran, Barangay Pagsanghan, General Nakar, Quezon, at sa malapit sa boundary ng Barangay Daraitan, Tanay, Rizal.
Inaasahang aabot sa P12.2 billion ang gagastusin sa proyektong ang 85% ng halaga ay uutangin Export-Import Bank of China sa ilalim ng Official Development Assistance (ODA) program habang ang 15% ay sasagutin ng MWSS.
Gayunpaman, lumobo ang project cost ng proyekto sa P15.3 billion, o pagtaas ng 25.42%, na katumbas ng P3.1 billion increase.
Ayon kay de Lima, kabilang sa sinisilip na irregularidad sa proyekto ay ang loan agreement sa pagitan ng MWSS at the Export-Import Bank of China, lalo na ang “disadvantageous terms” sa panig ng Pilipinas partikular ang pagtatakda na ang China Energy Engineering Corporation Limited, o isang Chinese contractor, ang siyang gagawa sa Kaliwa Dam Project.
“Since it was first proposed, many have opposed the project, citing concerns about its negative impacts on the community and the environment. Affected communities and environmental advocates protesting the Kaliwa Dam Project have reportedly been subjected to several human rights violations, such as red-tagging, threats of nuisance lawsuits, physical violence, and killings,” paglalahad pa ng ranking lady House minority solon.
“Among the red flags surrounding the Kaliwa Dam project are the illegal construction of access roads even before 2018, without local permits, without clearances, without the Free, Prior or Informed Consent (FPIC) of indigenous peoples’ (IP) communities, and in defiance of a stoppage order issued by the provincial Environment and Natural Office (ENRO); the questionable issuance of the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC), and the lack of genuine consultation and representation in the conduct of the FPIC process.”
Kinuwestyon naman ni De Lima kung bakit hindi muna ikinonsidera ang pagkakaroon ng praktikal at mas ligtas na pamamaraan bago inilunsad ang proyekto, lalo’t mayroong malaking pagkabahala na masisira nito ang bulubundukin ng Sierra Madre at malalagay din sa peligro ang mga komunidad sa paligid nito.
“Clearly, the financial, environmental, social, and moral costs all outweigh the projected benefits of the Kaliwa Dam. We cannot call this development. We cannot call this progress. And we cannot, in good conscience, call this governance.”
“This is about truth. This is about accountability. This is about the future we choose to defend—or the future we allow to be taken from our people. Let us stand with the communities who have been silenced, displaced, dismissed, and endangered,” pagtatapos ng partylist legislator. (ROMER R. BUTUYAN)
