₱5 Billion Armament Budget to Secure West Philippines Oil and Gas Field Approved by Pres. Aquino

President Benigno Aquino III has approved the release of ₱4.9 Billion from the Malampaya fund to strengthen the defenses of natural gas exploration in northern Palawan, National Treasurer Roberto Tan said Wednesday (September 14, 2011).

The fund to be released this month, will be disbursed to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) for the purchased of New smaller patrol vessel, 4 radar Station, Tanks, and modern assault rifles and ammunitions. The AFP was tasked to acquire and deploy a support fleet of ships smaller than the Hamilton class BRP Gregorio del Pilar.

As early as last March, the Philippine military sent an aircraft to the disputed Recto Bank ( Reed Bank) near Palawan following reports that Chinese patrol boats were trying to harass a Filipino oil exploration team there.

Lt. Gen. Juancho Sabban, chief of the AFP Western Mindanao Command, said the Chinese were claiming the exploration team from the Department of Energy was in Chinese territory where in fact the Recto Bank is just in the backyard of the Philippines, within 200 Nautical Miles Exclusive Economic Zone, while china is within thousands of Kilometers.

BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the Philippine Navy's largest and newly acquired ship, is a symbol of the Philippines' "seriousness" in fortifying the protectors of the country's maritime resources.

The Gregorio del Pilar, however, is less than half the size of China's first aircraft carrier that is expected to go on sea trials by the end of September. The Philippines' largest ship is 367 feet long, compared to China's Shi Lang that measures 1,000 feet.

₱100 Billion Malampaya "Commingled" Fund Missing?

The National Treasurer also disclosed Wednesday at the joint congressional oversight committee hearing on the comprehensive tax reform package that the Malampaya fund, with a remaining balance of ₱99.45 Billion, exists as a "commingled" special account in the government's general fund.

He said the Malampaya collections from 2002 to August 2011 totaled ₱121.97 Billion, of which ₱21.645 Billion was disbursed partly to pay for the Hamilton class ship which the Philippines bought from the United States of America.

During the hearing, Senator Ralph Recto made an issue out of the "commingled" status of the Malampaya fund and said that the fund was missing. Recto argued that the fund cannot be used for any purpose other than those for which it was created.

In a July 5 statement, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad explained the Malampaya fund was "…not actual cash but an accounting of revenue inflows and expenditure items charged against the Fund since revenues were remitted to the government from the Malampaya Natural Gas Project since it started in 2002."

The Malampaya special account is known at the Department of Budget and Management as Fund 151 and is managed by the Bureau of Treasury and the Energy Department.

Abad also said back in July that the Aquino administration had charged ₱2.87 Billion to the Malampaya account for "necessary energy-related" expenditures:

·        ₱2 Billion for fuel requirements of the National Power Corporation-Small Power Utilities Group (NPC-SPUG), to avert a power shortage in off-grid areas

·        ₱450 million for the Pantawid Pasada program as direct support to jeepney and tricycle drivers affected by the recent spate of oil price hikes and

·        ₱423 million for the purchase of the USS Hamilton cutter marine vessel to strengthen the security perimeter of the Malampaya Natural Gas Project.

Abad claimed that during the Arroyo administration only ₱250 million out of the ₱19.64 billion drawn from the fund was spent on an energy-related project that provided electricity to 211 villages in 2006

"The rest of the 98.73 percent or ₱19.39 billion was released for non-energy related projects," Abad noted and broke it down as follows:

·        In 2006, ₱1 billion for the Armed Forces Modernization Fund (What AFP modernization happened in 2006?)

·        In 2008, ₱4 billion for the Department of Agriculture

·        In 2009, a total of ₱14.39 billion to various agencies, including ₱7.07 billion for the Department of Public Works and Highways, ₱2.14 billion for the Philippine National Police, ₱1.82 billion for the Agriculture Department, ₱1.4 billion for the National Housing Authority, and ₱900 million for the Department of Agrarian Reform.

National Treasurer Tan said the ₱4.9 billion for the security build-up in northern Palawan will likely be raised through borrowings and then credited to Fund 151.

Budget Secretary Abad in a statement September 7 described how government will disburse the money for Malampaya defenses.

"The amount is divided between the capability requirements of the Philippine Navy and Philippine Air Force. Of this amount, ₱2.65 billion will fund base support and logistic system, coast watch requirements; and the acquisition of a high-endurance cutter sea vessel and three helicopters of the Philippine Navy."

"Meanwhile, the Air Force will be using ₱2.30 billion to purchase three helicopters and develop a base-hangar," Abad said.

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Why China refused to bring the Spratlys issue to the United Nations?

Is it because China knew that they can’t win over the spratlys so they refused to raise the Spratlys disputes to the United Nations?

Based on applicable international maritime and related laws, China knows that if she petitions the United Nations International Court of Justice or the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to affirm her dubious claim that she owns everything in the South China Sea aka West Philippine Sea — her chances of winning are about as likely as having a snowfall in the Sahara desert.

Both Courts have proper jurisdictions to settle sovereignty issues between nations regarding marine territories — such as those concerning the Spratly and Paracel islands.

Staging …..

Let’s imagine  what most likely would happen if  China does take her case to the International Court of Justice  and the representative of China — let’s call him Mr. Li — is before the Court headed by the Presiding Judge. Consider this scenario:

Judge:  “Please inform this Court of the basis for your claim that the entire South China Sea aka West Philippines Sea belongs completely to the People’s Republic of China?”

Mr. Li: “Thank you, your honor. Our claim is based on the historical fact that this entire area has belonged to us since the Han Dynasty.”

Judge: “How do you intend to prove your case?”

Mr. Li: “I will present to this Court an almost two thousand year old Han Dynasty map that indicates the limits of the Han Dynasty kingdom.”

Judge: “Let’s  assume for purposes of discussion  that  the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and other surrounding countries were provinces or part of the Han Dynasty during its time even if the map you hold may just actually be a navigational map which does not really define the limits of the Han Dynasty. Now my study of China’s history indicate that the Han Dynasty lasted from 206 B.C. To 220 A.D.  Is this correct?”

Mr. Li: “Yes your honor.”

Judge: “I assume Mr. Lee that you are familiar with Alexander the Great, the young Macedonian king who conquered much of the ancient world.”

Mr. Li: “I am, your honor.”

Judge: “At the time of his death in 323 B.C., Alexander’s kingdom included Greece, Syria, Persia now known as Iran, Egypt and a part of India. Are you aware Mr. Lee that Macedonia, Alexander’s country — is now known as the Republic of Macedonia?”

Mr. Li: “If you say so your honor.”

Judge: “Good! You appear to know your history. I assume you are also familiar with the Roman Empire which existed for over a thousand years.”

Mr. Li: “Thank you your honor, I do read history.”

Judge: “You are then aware Mr. Lee that at its height, the Roman Empire included most of Europe and parts of Africa and Asia.”

Mr. Li: “I am aware, your honor.”

Judge: “Now Mr. Lee, since the time of Alexander, the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty — through the course of time and historical events, various  independent countries have emerged in Europe, Africa and Asia — which now have their own respective territories. This is a reality which  we all have to accept, wouldn’t you say?”

Mr. Li: “We cannot deny reality, your honor.”

Judge: “Now Mr. Lee, another undeniable reality is that Alexander’s empire, the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty kingdom are no longer existent — am I correct in my observation?

Mr. Li: “You are correct, your honor.”

Judge: “Now Mr.Lee, in all candor, do you seriously believe that if the Republic of Macedonia and the Italian government were to come before this Court and petition us to affirm that they own the territories of these now independent countries because they were once a part of Alexander’s empire or the Roman empire — that we would be persuaded to grant these petitions?”

Mr. Li: “I understand what you are getting at, Judge — but most of what we are claiming as ours is marine area and not land.”

Judge: “The Spratlys and the Paracel islands are not land? Anyway, isn’t it a fact that China is a signatory to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) which she ratified on July 6, 1996 thereby agreeing to be bound by its provisions — and part of which is that anything within 200 miles from the baseline of a country belongs to that country?

Mr. Li: “China did agree to those provisions at a time when it was not yet aware of the far reaching consequences of UNCLOS to her national interests.”

Judge: “I will not mince my words Mr. Lee. What you mean is that at that time, the world, including China, was not yet aware, that vast deposits of oil and natural gas were to be found within the territorial limits of neighboring countries. Now because of this awareness, even if China knows she is trespassing and violating international law, she is using the coercive might of her size, military or otherwise — to grab these enormous reserves of petrowealth from the territories of her smaller, weaker, poorer neighbors — who badly need these assets to improve the plight of their own people.

Postscript:  In view of all the facts and existing applicable law, the likelihood is that the UN court will find China’s petition to be without merit.

Notwithstanding requests from the Philippines, neighboring countries and the United States to bring West Philippine Sea sovereignty issues to the United Nations, China has steadfastly refused to do so. Instead, it is constantly involved in mind games, using scare tactics, insisting that everything in the whole West Philippines Sea is theirs and that this issue is non-negotiable.

By so doing, the gigantic oil hungry dragon seeks to condition the national minds of her neighbors to forcibly accept inequitable bilateral settlement agreements — without United Nations or United States involvement. The Philippines, Vietnam and other neighbor countries must not fall into this trap. They should unite and create an alliance and insist — with the aid of the global community, with military means if necessary — that China should respect their rights and leave their national patrimony alone.

The most loudly applauded part of President Benigno Simeon Aquino’s State of the Nation speech was his strong affirmation that what belongs to the Philippines stays in the Philippines. Everyone understood his meaning:  The Philippines will stand firm against China’s bully tactics and mind games in trying to grab our energy and marine resources.

What a big difference to have a trustworthy President who provides moral leadership and looks after the interests of the nation instead of one ready to sell out the country’s patrimony for personal gain.

Source:

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/7319/why-china-will-not-bring-the-spratlys-issue-to-the-united-nations

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The Royal Sultanate of Sulu and the Republic of the Philippines will reunite as 1 and United Nations for the Spratlys

Sulu Sultanate rejects China claim over Spratlys

The Sultanate of Sulu slammed for the claim of China over the Spratly Islands, saying the disputed territory was part of the Sultanate of Sulu long before the Spaniards came to the Philippines.

“China has no right over the Spratly Islands in what it calls the South China Sea because that is part of our ancestral domain, including the marine territory around it and the waters around these islands is part of the Sulu Sea,” Majaraj Julmuner Jannaral, Sultanate information officer, quoting His Majesty Muhammad Fuad Abdulla Kiram I, the reigning Sultan of Sulu and Sabah (North Borneo).

Jannaral said China has launched a “divide-and-rule” strategy over ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) members because it has refused to talk on the Spratlys issue, and instead wants to deal or negotiate with the 10 member countries individually.

“This is unacceptable to me and my people,” Jannaral quoted the Sultan as saying.

He said historically, the proprietary rights over the Spratlys, Sabah(North Borneo), the Sulu archipelago, and Palawan and parts of Mindanao belong to the Sultanate of Sulu and (North Borneo) Sabah even long before the Spaniards came to the Philippines.

“Thus, China is violating our people’s human rights by openly and unilaterally announcing ownership of the Spratlys and the waters around it,” the Sultan said in an official statement.

Jannaral, quoting the statement, said “China may have forgotten that the sovereign political right (not the proprietary right) over the disputed area was given by the Sultan’s late father, Sultan Muhammad Esmail E. Kiram I, to President Diosdado Macapagal in 1962, and later in 1969, to President Ferdinand Marcos to recover particularly Sabah (North Borneo) from Malaysia.”

“But Sabah (North Borneo) is not an issue with China. Our concern here is the Spratlys and what China calls the South China Sea, because the Chinese leaders state this is their core interest,” the statement said.

The Sultanate said that by claiming the Spratlys, China has manifested what President Aquino called “bullying” tactics on the five other claimants – Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Jannaral said the Chinese military has even timed its announcement with the open sea trial runs of its first aircraft carrier in the north-eastern China Sea this month and its formal launch next October with its current verbal exchanges with the US regarding open use of the South China Sea by international commercial shipping.

“My blood lineage dates back from the Mahjapahit and Shrivijaya empires, which extended from Sabah (North Borneo), the Sulu archipelago, Palawan, parts of Mindanao, the islands now known as the Spratlys, Palawan, and up to the Visayas and Manila,” the Sultan’s statement reads.

“The Spanish colonial forces drove my forefathers from Manila and the Visayas but never conquered the territories of the Sultan of Sulu and Sabah because they failed to subjugate us. The Spaniards illegally transferred the Philippines, the Sulu archipelago, Sabah (North Borneo), and Guam to the Americans in their 1898 Treaty of Paris without the Sultan’s consent,” it added.

According to the statement, the Sultan’s direct ancestor, Sultan Jamalul Ahlam Kiram, rented out Sabah to the British East India Company in 1878.

“After the last world war, Britain illegally transferred Sabah to Malaysia when London granted Malaysia its independence in 1963.”

Proof that Britain and Malaysia recognized the Sultan’s proprietary rights over Sabah is the yearly payment as rent, up to this day, which is paid regularly by Malaysia to the Sultan and eight other descendants of the first Sultan.

The Sultan said he agreed with President Aquino’s position that China cannot legally claim ownership of the Spratlys, which are at least 800 miles away from the nearest Chinese territory, while some of the islands are within the 200-nautical mile economic zone limits of the Philippines under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

He said China’s claim violates the UNCLOS, which it signed. The Philippines is also a signatory to UNCLOS.

“President Aquino showed his quality nationalist leadership with his stand that settlement of the Spratly issue and the South China Sea - West Philippines Sea questions must be through peaceful and mutually beneficial diplomatic talks – especially to the members of the ASEAN since these islands are physically closer to us than China,” the Sultan said.

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