MANILA—President Rodrigo Duterte defended the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) for its makeover of Manila Bay with crushed dolomite sand, adding that it "is beautiful to the eyes."

"What is beautiful is beautiful. Dolomite is beautiful to the eyes. Period. 'Wag ka na magtanong kasi hindi niyo naman kaya kung kayo (Don't ask because you cannot do it)," Duterte said in a taped public speech aired late Thursday.

He said there had been opportunities to rehabilitate Manila Bay, but it was only Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu who "took the problem by its horns".

The DENR, aside from dumping crushed dolomite rocks in Manila Bay as part of its rehabilitation project, has also planted mature coconut palm trees along Roxas Boulevard.

• DENR completes Baywalk's beach look, plants palm trees on Roxas Boulevard

The agency has been criticized following its P389-million project dumping dolomite sand in one part of the bay's shore to create an artificial beach, which government said was part of efforts to beautify the bay and help improve Filipinos' mental health during the pandemic.

It has been criticized for being wasteful, as hundreds of millions were spent on the project in the middle of a crippling health crisis.

Malacañang has also defended the project in past, saying the funds for the rehabilitation have long been allocated.

• Palace says DENR can't drop Manila Bay's dolomite makeover
• Dolomite beach sa Maynila, sorpresang binuksan sa publiko

RELATED VIDEO

Watch more in iWantv or TFC.tv