MANILA – Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III said filing an impeachment complaint against President Rodrigo Duterte over his remarks allowing China to fish in the exclusive economic zone (EZZ) of the Philippines will be a good “test case.”
Sotto on Thursday said it was best for those who were saying that Duterte violated the Constitution to file for impeachment, to see if they have a point.
“I suggest that they file an impeachment and let’s see if they are right,” Sotto. “It’s very difficult to say that there’s exclusivity when it’s under water.”
However, Sotto refused to comment if Duterte’s statement was really a ground to impeachment since the Senate would become an impeachment court if indeed a complaint is filed against the President.
Sotto pointed out he did not “see anything wrong” with the presence of foreign fishers in the EEZ of the Philippines, “as long as we’re allowed to fish also in their zones… because they will treat us as friends likewise.”
“The fish could be coming from China, and the fish from the Philippines could be going to China if we want to be technical about it and relate it to the constitutionality of what should be owned by us,” Sotto said.
“There are exclusive types of fish that are only found in China but can be found here because of migration perhaps. It could be a very good test case that it is a constitutional violation,” he added.
Duterte was asked if the Philippines should bar China from fishing in the Philippines’ EEZ. He replied that Manila and Beijing are “friends” and there should not be any “bloody conclusion.”
Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said the government would “tolerate” China’s fishermen in the EEZ, where Manila has exclusive rights to resources, based on a 2016 ruling of a United Nations-backed court./PN
