By Robert B. Roque, Jr.
For weeks, headlines have highlighted the influx of mainland Chinese nationals involved in illegal activities. Exclusive residential areas like Multi-National Village and Ayala Alabang are in the spotlight.
However, there’s a deafening silence about Makati’s posh villages. Friends report sightings in Forbes Park, Urdaneta Village, and Magallanes, where Chinese tenants rent houses at exorbitant rates, flaunting luxury SUVs and bodyguards.
This is not about trying to blend in but asserting themselves to be untouchable.
Disturbing case study
For example, in Magallanes Village, a friend of mine reports that a Chinese tenant violated Home Owners’ Association rules in the past year.
Agents from a government investigative agency visited the HOA office only to intimidate the staff in defense of the foreign national.
When the incident escalated into a lawsuit and the HOA won, this should have been a precursor for the government to further investigate dubious foreign nationals.
However, from what I’ve gathered, there is hardly any monitoring of the activities of these Chinese tenants whose aggressive behavior has already been established.
This complacency is dangerous. If a high-profile incident is what it takes to trigger action, how are other villages expected to handle any suspicious activity of foreign nationals within their communities?
POGO connections
With Congress exposing how POGOs have been operating illegally and autonomously under the auspices of armed and dangerous mainland Chinese nationals, it is imperative for national and local governments to audit these foreigners renting in Makati’s exclusive subdivisions and posh condos as well.
The unchecked presence of potential criminals in these high-security zones is a ticking time bomb. Our government must step up and ensure these areas don’t become safe havens for unlawful activities. When will the government heed the many voices, even from within the government, who want the suspicious activities of these dubious foreigners investigated?
Critical security zones
Also, let us not overlook the strategic importance of some of these locations. Multinational Village in Paranaque City is practically a spit away from Villamor Air Base. That landing strip is one of the more frequent departure and arrival terminals used by no less than the President for his air travels.
And even Makati, the country’s Central Business District, and its subdivisions like Magallanes Village, is perilously close to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
The presence of potentially illegal elements in such subdivisions situated next to high-security zones is alarming. Silence and inaction are not just puzzling; they are perilous. The government should not be sleeping on these possible national security threats.
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