Information obtained by PCIJ through Freedom of Information requests show that many of the projects touted by Duterte’s China entourage do not even appear on the Philippine government’s priority infrastructure projects. For freshly-registered firms how were their directors able to both anticipate Duterte’s turn to China, and secure influence with the new government so quickly? (Incidentally, one of the Malacañang staffers for the Estrada-era version of the PBP now owns another company that snagged a deal during Duterte’s China trip. Nickel ore stands apart as the one commodity where China depends on the Philippines. The second set of questions deals with the Duterte administration’s relationship with China.

Source: Philippine Star May 09, 2017 04:07 UTC