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Trust a partner that can deliver: Sen. Grace Poe hopes the Marcos administration will be more discerning when signing foreign loan agreements for the three prospective railway projects. During Tuesday's plenary session, August 9, 2022, Poe asked Sen. JV Ejercito why the government would enter a loan agreement with China Eximbank when it offers higher interest rates. To illustrate, Poe pointed out that China Eximbank would charge the government a three-percent interest rate compared to the 0.01 percent offered by Japan. “Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise that the project did not push through… I would trust a partner that has delivered already, time and again,” the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Public Services said. In response, Ejercito agreed that he would rather enter loan agreements with Japan because it is more reliable. “Personally, I would rather have Japan; hopefully, since Eximbank and China seem to have backed out… we can renegotiate or look for other sources,” he said. (Voltaire F. Domingo / Bibo Nueva España / Senate PRIB)