Statement of Sen. Francis Pangilinan, former food security secretary, on the Chinese vessel ramming a Philippine fishing boat in Recto Bank
FOOD SECURITY IS NATIONAL SECURITY: KIKO

The Chinese vessel ramming the fishing boat of 22 Filipino fishermen in Recto Bank is not just a matter of sovereignty or defending our territory, which are of paramount national interest. Ang pagtanggol at pagsuporta sa ating mga mangingisda ay katumbas din ng pagsiguro ng ating kakainin.

The Recto Bank is a huge source of aquamarine resources. Fish is the cheapest source of protein for Filipinos. Hindi tayo magiging isang malusog, matatag, at nagkakaisang bansa kung marami sa atin ang gutom. (As per the April 2019 Social Weather Stations survey, ?an estimated 2.3 million families experienced involuntary hunger at least once in the last three months.) Pambansang seguridad ang seguridad sa pagkain.

Nakasalalay ang tinatayang 376,350 square kilometers ng West Philippine Sea ang ating-atin at hindi saklaw ng inaangkin ng China. This area -- a rich source of fish, oil, gas, and other minerals -- is much larger than our land area of about 300,000 square kilometers. We cannot be meek and submissive in defending what belongs to us by international law.

This government is willing to go to war against Canada over garbage and yet it is docile and subservient toward China over tens of trillions of dollars' worth of marine, mineral, and energy sources that are ours based on the UN Convention on the law of the seas and as decided by the international arbitral tribunal.

Paano natin matutugunan ang kahirapan at kagutuman sa ating bayan? Dapat nating masigasig na ipinagtatanggol at inaalagaan ang ating likas-yaman at ang mga nagpapakain sa atin, ang mga magsasaka at mangingisda.

Magiging mailap pa rin ang isang masagana't maunlad na Pilipinas kung hindi natin ipaglalaban at ipagtatanggol ang kanilang interes. Kapag malusog, masagana, at masaya ang mga nagpapakain sa atin, malusog, masagana, at masaya ang buong bansa.

Dapat nating harapin ang China at pangalagaan ang pinagkukunan natin ng pagkain.