By Iloilo – Earlier today, July 16, 2024, President Bongbong Marcos Jr. led the inauguration of the Jalaur River Multipurpose Project-Stage II (JRMP-II) at Calinog, Iloilo along with other officials.
In his inaugural speech, Marcos touted JRMP-II as a crucial initiative poised to boost rice production in Region 6 by 160,000 metric tons annually. He emphasized the project’s role in supplying 86 million liters of daily water to Iloilo City and nearby areas for commercial and industrial use, as well as its capacity to generate 6.6 megawatts of hydroelectric power to bolster Panay Island’s energy grid. Additionally, the project also promises “to develop inland fishery, floating solar energy systems, and eco-cultural tourism, in the near future”.
However, the Jalaur River for the People’s Movement (JRPM) swiftly denounced these claims as deceptive. According to JRPM, the project’s purported benefits are overshadowed by its exorbitant costs—nearly 20 billion pesos—and its potential environmental and social impacts.
To JRPM, these benefits are far from reality as “areas intended for irrigation are primarily sugarcane fields, with the remaining areas occupied by unauthorized land conversion projects for residential and commercial uses”. JRPM added that the 86 million liters of water will not be free and “the 6.6 megawatts of hydroelectric power is negligible compared to the over 650 megawatts generated by the 13 power plants on the island”.
Apart from boosting rice production, generating electricity, providing potable water, and developing ecotourism activities, Marcos also said that the administration’s water development projects “will also help address flooding.”
However, JRPM said that a major disaster or flooding could be expected, citing experiences in Central Luzon where six major dams were constructed. “In Iloilo province, despite being smaller, the Moroboro Dam in Dingle also causes downstream flooding. When its floodgates are closed, Calinog, Passi, San Enrique, Duenas, and parts of Dingle get flooded. When opened, the downstream areas of Dingle, Pototan, Barotac Nuevo, Dumangas, Zarraga, Leganes, and parts of Iloilo City are immediately flooded. This presents a significant disaster risk for hundreds of thousands of residents in the province of Iloilo,” said JRPM. According to JRPM, this is apart from the mega-dam project being 10 kilometers away from the active West Panay Fault line.
According to JRPM, the continuing militarization in the Tumandok IP communities should not also be forgotten as nine Tumandok leaders were massacred and 16 others were imprisoned last December 30, 2020, for strongly opposing said mega-dam project. For more than a decade, the Tumandok people have fiercely opposed the project due to the destruction of their livelihoods, encroachment on their lands, and the violation of their rights due to intense militarization and the forced acquisition of their consent for the project through a flawed and fabricated FPIC process.
“The public must prepare for the danger posed by the mega dam,” said JRPM. The JRPM added that its inauguration spells disaster for the Ilonggo people, promising only devastation to their livelihoods and lives. The group also calls on the government, and the armed forces, including the South Korean government that funds the JRMP-II to immediately stop the construction and be accountable for violating the human rights of the people.
The JRMP-II is expected to be fully operational in mid-2025./PT
