Beijing – The Philippine delegation is probably one of the largest business contingents to invade China, with over 300 people joining President Noynoy Aquino for his five-day state visit. P-Noy took the PAL Boeing 777 with government officials and some businessmen while we were on the AirAsia chartered flight with Philippines, Inc. chairman Tonyboy Cojuangco with some 100 people, while the rest went on their own. We arrived in Beijing ahead of the Presidential party at around 6:35 p.m. local time. No time change between Manila and Beijing.
President Noy was the keynote speaker during the Philippines-China Economic and Trade forum at the China World Hotel, where we are all staying. The forum was organized by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the Philippines’ Department of Trade and Industry with our poor friend, the harassed BOI Chairman USec Tito Panlilio taking the lead. This was attended by all the members of the Philippine business delegation where Tessie Sy-Coson of the SM Group also spoke. The SM Group has a substantial investment in China with several malls already constructed in Xiamen, Sichuan, Shangdong, Fujian and other key locations.
There are more Filipino businessmen who also have a lot of investments in China, and as a former Philippine Ambassador to China remarked during the pre-departure briefing, Chinese investments to the Philippines can and should be increased. In any case, on a scale of one to 10, this visit will certainly warrant an eight at least, especially after the August 2010 bus hostage crisis and the botched ZTE deal.
The number of attendees for the state banquet in P-Noy’s honor has been limited to 16 including the President. Nonetheless, President Noy is also expected to attend the dinner with the business delegates and officials of the State Grid Corporation of China, the biggest electric power transmission and distribution firm in China whose headquarters is located in Xicheng District in Beijing.
The last time I visited the capital city of Beijing was 28 years ago. Needless to say, it has dramatically changed, with so much progress apparent from the tall modern buildings dotting the city and the millions of cars plying the 10-lane skyways. With progress and population, Beijing’s air quality has also become the worst ever in the world. You begin to appreciate Metro Manila which is not so bad compared to Beijing where pollution levels are extremely high 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
As a matter of fact, the Chinese government is putting a cap on Beijing’s annual coal consumption at 20 million tons by 2015 in an attempt to improve the air quality. If unchecked, the city’s total annual coal consumption could reach 90 million tons by 2015, which is why they are resorting to other forms of energy such as natural gas, diesel, petrol and are even mulling the possibility of importing electricity.
Those who think traffic in Metro Manila is horrible can consider themselves lucky because it is absolutely much worse in Beijing with close to five million cars and only 2.5 million parking spaces. Surveys place Beijing in a tie with Mexico City as having the worst traffic in the world, and some can still remember the 62-mile, nine-day traffic jam in the Beijing-Tibet expressway sometime last year. Officials of the Beijing municipal transport commission are pushing for higher parking fees to lessen the number of private cars and encourage the use of public transport (along with the construction of more underground transport systems) in order to ease the traffic congestion that hits the city day-in and day out.
Progress has its paybacks and in the case of Beijing (and most other cities), it’s pollution and traffic.
P-Noy’s favorite relatives
Joining the business delegation to China are President Noy’s favorite uncle, Tony “Uncle Mort” Lopa and his favorite cousin Jaime “Jim” Lopa. Tony is a brother of the late Ricardo “Baby” Lopa who married Terry Cojuangco who is a sister of P-Noy’s mother, the late president Cory Cojuangco-Aquino. Jim is the 7th among Baby and Terry Lopa’s children of nine. Both Tony and Jim are favorites of President Noy for one good reason: They never ask him for any favors (a major pet peeve of P-Noy) and both keep a very low profile. Jim and “Uncle Mort” Lopa have also been very supportive of P-Noy ever since the time he first ran for çongress.
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Email: spybits08@yahoo.com.