Duterte: ‘I trust China’
Credit to Author: Catherine S. Valente, TMT| Date: Fri, 29 Nov 2019 05:54:24 +0000
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has declared that he still trusted China amid claims that it was capable of controlling the Philippines’ power grid.
Speaking to reporters in Malacañang on Thursday night, Duterte said he did not see China’s co-ownership of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) as a threat to national security.
He said that the military could handle any issues concerning the country’s national security.
“May mga (There are) security issues that can be handled by the military. It cannot be a problem,” the President said during a media interview.
“China has talked to us, through me. Kulang pa ang Pilipino ng trust (Filipinos don’t have much trust) but I trust them. I take their word for it,” he added.
Duterte made the statement after some senators and former Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio have raised concerns over China’s co-ownership of the NGCP.
China’s State Grid Corporation owns 40 percent of the NGCP, a privately owned consortium.
Carpio on Tuesday said Beijing’s control of NGCP should be a “cause for concern” because it would be “easy” for the foreign country to shut down the Philippines’ power grid by “inject[ing] malware or software.”
But the President said he would believe China rather than Carpio, who was “so enamored with China.”
“Hindi ako naniniwala diyan kay Carpio wala namang matinong sinabi iyan eh. Ano ang sinabi niyang nakatulong sa Pilipinas (I don’t believe Carpio because he does not make any sense. What are the things he said that became beneficial to the Philippines)?” he said.
In a survey conducted in September, 54 percent of Filipinos had little trust in China, while 21 percent said they had much trust in the communist state. It resulted in “poor” net trust of -33, down by 9 points from the “bad” -24 rating in June 2019.
Malacañang previously expressed optimism that Filipinos would eventually appreciate China, considering Duterte’s push for an independent foreign policy that is favorable to the Philippines.
“The Palace is not surprised, as it does not feel affronted, with the results of the survey released yesterday, November 20, by the Social Weather Stations which indicate that China remains to be the least trusted country among Filipinos with a net trust rating of -33,” Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo said in a statement.
“It is in our belief, however, that China, like any other country, will be eventually appreciated by the Filipinos by reason of the President’s independent foreign policy which has resulted in significant benefits favorable to the Philippines,” he added.
Since assuming the presidency, Duterte has sought to downplay Manila’s maritime dispute with Beijing in exchange for improved ties with the world’s second largest economy.
Duterte has also refused to flaunt the Philippines’ victory against China in a United Nations-backed arbitration court in 2016 which invalidated Beijing’s expansive claims to the waters.
But the President defended his approach, saying Manila could not yet stand up to Beijing, whose military and economy were far superior.
Recently, Duterte said he would invoke the Mutual Defense Treaty with the United States and ask the the country’s long-time ally to send its Seventh Fleet to the disputed waters to confront the Chinese forces.
The Philippines claims parts of the South China Sea within its exclusive economic zone and calls it the West Philippine Sea.