Statement of Cong Roilo Golez on access to Philippine bases

Statement of Cong Roilo Golez on access to Philippine bases

I fully support the plan to give US, Japanese, even Indian, Indonesian, Malaysian and Vietnamese, war assets, like ships and planes, access to our military bases, existing and future, for the purpose of refueling, R& R, replenishment of provisions, etc. Access is a normal gesture of one ally to another, in the same way that our newly acquired converted cutter, the BRP Ramon Alcaraz, is now docked in San Diego, California from the US East Coast en route to the Philippines.

I say we ignore the pronouncements of the leftist militant groups who reflexively object to the presence of military assets from the USA, but are curiously so silent about the permanent presence of Chinese troops and warships in Mischief Reef within our EEZ and their seizure of Panatag Shoal. These militant groups are doing what they have to do in pursuit of their ideology and their voices should be respected as part of the necessary democratic debate.

Alliances are also very normal sovereign acts of independent countries big or small, strong or weak, and these acts do not diminish, but even strengthen one's sovereignty. Note the alliances entered into by then super power Great Britain in the early 19th century to confront France.

In fact, even Chinese navy ships conduct such regular port visits in Sri Lanka and Pakistan and even Maldives in implementation of the so-called Chinese "string of pearls" strategy in the Indian Ocean, apparently to extend their influence in that area up to the Horn of Africa.