MALACAÑANG on Monday doubled down on its position that not an inch of the country’s territory will be given up to any foreign power under the Marcos administration.
“The President’s position remains the same: No part of our territory nor any of our interests will be surrendered to any foreign power,” Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said.
“What the President wants is for every Filipino to be able to express what our rights are over our territory and what our interests are in the West Philippine Sea,” she added.
But while the Palace did not agree with the statement of Senator Rodante Marcoleta that the Philippines should just give up the Kalayaan Island Group to “make it easier” amid maritime tensions with China, Castro said the remark does not amount to treason under Philippine laws.
“As you know, a requirement of treason is that there should be an actual state of war. And we are not in an actual state of war,” the Palace official said.
Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela earlier described Marcoleta’s remark as potentially treasonous.
The senator eventually said his statement was taken out of context.
Castro urged public officials to be cautious and consistent when discussing sensitive issues involving national sovereignty.
“Whatever is being debated in the Senate, they are just performing their duty, and we have what we say about freedom of expression…But we should also ensure we are consistent in what we are expressing. As the saying goes, ‘One who sows air will reap a typhoon,’” Castro said.
For his part, Tarriela said while Marcoleta had clarified his previous statement, he still found the position of the senator “very disappointing.”
“As Filipinos, it is disheartening, infuriating, and disappointing that we have an elected member of the Senate and Congress who speaks this way, seemingly disregarding our position on the WPS,” he said in a radio interview.
For Tarriela, the senator’s remarks were “very clear.”
“Why does it seem that instead of condemning China’s illegal and aggressive actions, he appears to align with the interests of the People’s Republic of China and undermine our position?”
Tarriela also reiterated his invitation for Marcoleta and his son to join a future maritime domain awareness (MDA) flight to the KIG.
“So they can see that in Pag-Asa there are young Filipinos and a Filipino community. This is the most important reason why the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the PCG are standing their ground, and why this should not be given away,” he said.
Marcoleta, for his part, invited Tarriela to a “friendly debate” first amid the latter’s invitation to join an MDA flight to KIG.
Marcoleta said the debate should also include retired Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and University of the Philippines Institute of Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea professor Jay Batongbacal.
Tarriela rejected it outright, saying the West Philippine Sea issue is not a matter for debate, but one of settled law, national interest, and patriotic duty.
“I would be happy to arrange a light-hearted discussion on less consequential matters—perhaps food preferences, current fashion trends, or other societal topics—but our nation’s territorial integrity and legal entitlements in the West Philippine Sea are not subjects for public debate,” the PCG official said.
“As a Senator of the Republic, Senator Marcoleta is duty-bound to uphold and defend these very rights. By framing them as debatable, he risks undermining the very oath he took to preserve true faith and allegiance to the Republic and to support its Constitution and laws,” he added.
Local KIG officials and residents earlier took offense at Marcoleta’s statement, with the local government set to meet today (Tuesday) to file a resolution requesting the Senate secretariat to strike out the senator’s comment.
Kalayaan is the country’s only municipality located in the West Philippine Sea.
For its part, the Armed Forces of the Philippines yesterday said it remains guided by the President’s policy of “not giving up one square inch” of Philippine territory.
“Guided by a policy of ‘not giving up one square inch’ and a matching strategy of comprehensive archipelagic defense, your military will continue performing its mandate with utmost professionalism and love for country,” Philippine Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad said.
Trinidad said the extent of the national territory that the Armed Forces has sworn to protect includes the contested Bajo de Masinloc and the Kalayaan Island Group.
“Throughout history, the Armed Forces has never wavered in performing this mandate and we have proven it time and again,” he added.
