REP. RAUL “BOBOY” C. TUPAS
5th District of Iloilo
Chairman, Committee on National Defense and Security
0917-729-2437 |
https://www.facebook.com/RaulBoboyCTupas/VISITING FORCES TREATY, NOT MERE AGREEMENT
Let us get it right this time around. We should have a Visiting Forces Treaty, a real treaty ratified by the Senate of the Philippines and Senate of the United States.
The VFA being terminated now is not a treaty consistent with the parameters of the 1987 Constitution. Its main flaw is that it was not ratified by the United States Senate.
Let us learn from the lessons of these past decades. The VFT should be a treaty between equal sovereign states, far removed from the relationship status of former colonizer and former colonized with excess baggage from World War II, the Vietnam War, and the Cold War.
The talks for a VFT should also be an opportunity to set the stage for the replacement of the Mutual Defense Treaty with a much better treaty attuned to the current and emerging realities in national, regional, and global security.
While the Senate has the power of treaty concurrence, the House of Representatives has the power of the purse.
It is incumbent upon us in the House to make sure our public funds are spent on military engagements with the United States or any other sovereign state are devoted to upholding our Constitution and national interests for all generations of Filipinos.
It is preferable therefore that the negotiations for a VFT including the participation of Members of Congress for comprehensiveness, completeness, and circumspection before, during, and after the negotiations with the United States. (END)
Note: Rep. Raul “Boboy” Tupas is a former Philippine Army Captain and alumnus of The Philippine Military Academy Class of ‘94. He is currently the Chair of the House Committee on National Defense and Security.
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Topic: Visiting Forces Treaty, a real treaty ratified by the Senate of the Philippines and Senate of the Un (Read 512 times)