Charles Teves
Veteran journalist Ces Drilon refused to be talked down on by uneducated blogger Sass Sasot.
Drilon moderated the second Comelec presidential debate and brought up the issue of the West Philippine Sea.
“Paano mo makukumbinsi ang mga bansa sa ASEAN na magkaisa upang mapigilan ang militarisasyon ng Tsina sa West Philippine Sea?” she asked the candidates.
Each answered except for the dictator’s son Bongbong Marcos who was absent yet again. Following the program, Sasot went on Facebook and called out Drilon’s alleged lack of knowledge on the subject.
“Ces Drilon’s question on the West Philippine Sea is poorly researched,” she wrote.
Drilon called the blogger’s post a “poor response” to her question.
“This is a poor response to the Q (question), a legitimate one. The Philippines is not wanting to be an automatic heir of all the islands,” Drilon said.
“A code of conduct agreed upon by all ASEAN members would give us stronger leverage in dealing with China. Gusto lang natin protektahan ang teritoryo natin,” she added.
— AkoSiTreb (@AkoTreb) April 4, 2022
Despite an arbitral ruling, China continues to construct several islands in the South China Sea.
