US drive against China sharpens political tensions in the Philippines
Over the course of the last month, tensions have mounted sharply between the Philippines and China over the presence of Chinese vessels anchored in the disputed waters of the South China Sea. The tensions are finding open expression in Philippine politics, where the bourgeois opposition to President Rodrigo Duterte had gathered to form a coalition party, 1Sambayan, whose fundamental concern is to reorient Philippine foreign relations away from Beijing and back into the camp of Washington.
The heightened tensions first emerged over the announcement in late March, in the same week that 1Sambayan was founded, that Chinese vessels were anchored near Whitsun Reef, a feature of the South China Sea claimed by both countries. The Chinese government initially stated that the boats were fishing vessels sheltering in the boomerang shaped atoll from the brunt of a storm. While some vessels departed, others remained anchored
Senator Panfilo ‘Ping’ Lacson (Senate of the Philippines)
The senator gave the unsolicited advice as he warned that the “obvious” attempt of officials at “damage control” could result in more damage and worsen the political divide in the country.
“‘Pag nagda-damage control at sobra ang damage control at nagiging sobrang obvious na ang damage control, lalong nagkakadamage ‘yan (If you are doing damage control and it becomes too much and too obvious, it causes more damage),” Lacson said in an interview over DWIZ radio.
“Tapos na ‘yong usapin. Kung ako magbibigay unsolicited advice kay Secretary Roque, or doon sa taga-Malacañang, siguro mas maganda manahimik na lang, ‘wag na ‘yong marami pang pinapalabas na kung anu-ano (The debate will not push through. If I were to give a piece of unsolicited advice to Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque or those in Malacañang: It is better to just stay quiet, and not add more issues),” he added.
[Newspoint] A virtual non-President
Vergel O. Santos
Rodrigo Duterte has begun to recede into history. This is not only because he is in the final year of his six-year term as president, but because certain critical functions and powers of that office are already being exercised by subordinates and even outsiders.
But does he know that? It’s unthinkable that his narcissism and cluelessness – about public governance and leadership most relevantly – allows him to realize that his hold on power is slipping at all, let alone to appreciate its meaning and know what to do about it.
Any possessor of those traits may be easy to ignore in the usual case, but certainly not in a leader. And, in Duterte’s case, they happen to work in combination so profoundly as to plunge the nation into depths of fear and misery it has never seen.
(ALI VICOY / MANILA BULLETIN)
“What is the weight and value of the President’s words? Not much it seems,” Reyes said in a Twitter post Friday, May 7.
“From falsely claiming that he did not include the West Philippine Sea in his campaign promises, he now claims he will resign if proven that his statements on Scarborough Shoal are false,” he added.
In a televised public address on May 3, the President claimed that he never promised the people that he would retake the West Philippine Sea, adding that he did not promise to pressure China over the territorial dispute.
“The President is a swindler of the worst kind it seems. He denies making a campaign promise on the West Philippine Sea even if millions saw it on TV,” Reyes said.
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Protesters Demand China Leave South China Sea Territories
Dozens of protesters held a rally outside the Chinese Consulate in Manila on Friday, demanding China to get out of territories in the South China Sea claimed by the Philippines.
Dozens of protesters held a rally outside the Chinese Consulate in Manila on Friday, demanding China to get out of territories in the South China Sea claimed by the Philippines.
A protester wearing a mask bearing a face of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte pretended to sleep under a mosquito net to symbolize his inaction on the disputed South China Sea issues.