'Marcos resignation no solution to WPS dispute'

HOUSE Deputy Majority Leader and Iloilo 1st District Rep. Janette Garin on Monday said that the resignation of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. would not address the problem in the contested West Philippine Sea (WPS).

Garin made the remark in reaction to the earlier call of Davao del Norte 1st District representative and former House speaker Pantaleon Alvarez for Marcos Jr. to resign.

In a press briefing, Garin said that resignation «will not really solve the problem» and that the «best thing to do at this point is not calling for resignations of our officials but asking ourselves saan ba tayo pwedeng makatulong (where we can help).»

Moreover, she said that the issue cannot be resolved overnight by one president.

«What is important is that we are seeing concrete steps that the leadership of our country will not yield even an inch of our territory,» she said, adding: «The passion, determination, and that commitment, that is what is important.»

Alvarez had suggested that Marcos should resign in order to de-escalate the tension in the WPS between the Philippines and China.

«I will advise the President to reflect and meditate this Holy Week. If Jesus Christ himself made sacrifices for the people, maybe it is his turn to do the same by voluntarily resigning from his position and turning over the functions of the presidency to the duly elected Vice President in the person of VP Sara Duterte,» he said in a March 27 statement.

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In the same statement, Alvarez said, «I respectfully call for our President… to stop making decisions and action that will further escalate the tensions between the two countries.»

The Philippine military said that last March 23, China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels water cannoned a Filipino supply vessel heading to Ayungin Shoal.

Ayungin Shoal is part of the Philippines' exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

The incident prompted the Department of Foreign Affairs to summon the charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy «to convey the Philippines' strong protest against the aggressive actions undertaken by the CCG and Chinese Maritime Militia against the rotation and resupply mission undertaken by the Philippines» on March 23.

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Reina C.