Manila erects wall to obscure slum view
Source: Agencies |
May 4, 2012, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
DELEGATES attending an international conference in the Philippines capital of Manila may not see what they came to discuss: abject poverty.
A makeshift wall has been erected across a bridge on a road from the airport to downtown Manila that hides a sprawling slum along a garbage-strewn creek.
Presidential spokesman Ricky Carandang yesterday defended the wall's installation, saying "any country will do a little fixing up before a guest comes."
He expressed hope this week's annual meeting of Asian Development Bank Board of Governors will show the Philippines is open for business. The lending institution aims to cut poverty in the Asia-Pacific region.
"We need to show our visitors that Metro Manila is orderly. We owe it to ourselves," said metropolital Manila chief Francis Tolentino. "I see nothing wrong with beautifying our surroundings. We are not trying to keep the poor out of the picture."
"The government should face reality. If they don't, how will they know the problem, how will they solve the problem," said Renato Reyes, secretary general of the largest left-wing group Bayan. "By covering the truth, they lose the energy or intention to resolve the problem."
About a third of Manila's 12 million residents live in slums, and a third of 94 million Filipinos live below the poverty line of US$1.25 a day.
A makeshift wall has been erected across a bridge on a road from the airport to downtown Manila that hides a sprawling slum along a garbage-strewn creek.
Presidential spokesman Ricky Carandang yesterday defended the wall's installation, saying "any country will do a little fixing up before a guest comes."
He expressed hope this week's annual meeting of Asian Development Bank Board of Governors will show the Philippines is open for business. The lending institution aims to cut poverty in the Asia-Pacific region.
"We need to show our visitors that Metro Manila is orderly. We owe it to ourselves," said metropolital Manila chief Francis Tolentino. "I see nothing wrong with beautifying our surroundings. We are not trying to keep the poor out of the picture."
"The government should face reality. If they don't, how will they know the problem, how will they solve the problem," said Renato Reyes, secretary general of the largest left-wing group Bayan. "By covering the truth, they lose the energy or intention to resolve the problem."
About a third of Manila's 12 million residents live in slums, and a third of 94 million Filipinos live below the poverty line of US$1.25 a day.
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