Former President now House Speaker Gloria M. Arroyo yesterday declared that the world should not look at China as a threat but rather a partner in development.
Arroyo aired this view during the media briefing for the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference in Hainan Province in China that was attended by representatives from various international news agencies.
“The world should look at China’s rise as an opportunity rather than a threat,” Arroyo said.
Her statement, however, is expected to put her again as the target of criticisms from various groups and personalities assailing the $397-million China-Philippines loan agreement for the Chico River Pump Irrigation and Kaliwa Dam projects.
Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and other critics of the loan agreement warned against the Philippines getting entangled in a debt trap that will result to the surrender of patrimonial assets of the Philippines in case of default.
Arroyo said the China loan for the water supply sourcing and irrigation projects are among the “ways by which China has benefited the Philippines.”
She noted that as China starts to take over as the world’s leading economy, the Philippines and other developing countries should move to boost ties with Beijing instead of treating it as a competitor or a threat.
Arroyo is a board member of BFA, a non-profit organization that hosts high-level forums for leaders of government, business, and the academe in Asia and other countries to discuss most pressing issues in the region and the world.
She told the media here that China through the years has proven wrong the negative notions of its policies towards reform and opening up as it has become a partner in development. (Ben Rosario)
