It will be nice to look at, but there are several issues being raised in connection with the ongoing creation of a “white beach” along Manila’s Baywalk: the cost and timing of the construction, and its sustainability. As the government responds to the COVID-19 pandemic, the country keeps sinking deeper into debt. In this public health and economic crisis, can the country afford the P349-million price tag for the Boracay in Manila project? Environment officials have said the project was conceptualized as part of the Manila Bay cleanup that began last year, and funding was appropriated in the 2020 budget, long before the coronavirus disease 2019 struck.

Manila's white beach. (2020, September 8). The Philippine Star, p. 6.