MANILA — Malacañang on Monday thumbed down the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey, which showed 4 in 5 Filipinos disagree with the government’s supposed inaction against China’s military activities in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
“Actually, 100 percent of the Filipinos should disagree because we will not really allow that other state will take our territory. There is no such thing as government inaction,” Roque said in an interview over radio dzRH.
Roque said President Rodrigo Duterte has repeatedly said that he will never give up any of the country’s territories.
“Every time China does something that is against our sovereignty, we air our protest but we do it quietly. It is not true President Duterte is not doing anything,” Roque said.
Roque was referring to the Bicameral Consultative Mechanism where China and the Philippines tackle contentious issues including China’s militarization in the South China Sea.
“For him (Duterte), the contentious issues which cannot be resolved immediately should be temporarily set aside and instead focus on non-contentious issues such as economic and trade that we should push through,” Roque explained.
Two years ago, the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled in favor of the Philippines’ arbitration case, nullifying China’s nine-dash line map that covers almost the entire South China Sea.
China rejected the decision, prompting Duterte to temporarily shelve the PCA’s verdict to give way for friendly and peaceful dialogues and negotiations.
Duterte’s approach has paid off as it revived the Philippines-China relations strained by the Philippines’ arbitration case filed in 2013 under the administration of former President Benigno Aquino III. (Jelly Musico/PNA)