MANILA, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday thanked and heaped praises on a Chinese philanthropist who helped build a 10,000-bed drug rehabilitation center inside a military camp in Nueva Ecija, a province north of Manila.
Duterte attended the inauguration ceremony Tuesday and said that unlike others who criticized his anti-narcotics campaign, Chinese businessman Huang Rulun "came out of nowhere and came to my office and said he would help me solve the drug problem."
Huang, an overseas Chinese in the Philippines who donated 1.4 billion pesos (28.11 million U.S. dollars) to build two drug rehabilitation centers with a total land area of 100,000 square meters, expressed support for Duterte's war against drugs, saying "this is our modest efforts to make the Philippines peaceful, stable and harmonious."
Huang said the Philippines and China are close neighbors. "The people of the two countries have maintained a deep, friendly and long-lasting relationship. Especially since President Duterte took office (on June 30), he exerted efforts in strengthening the ties between China and the Philippines, promoting world peace, and opening a new page in the China-Philippines relations," he said.
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