“Why do Chinese military aircraft refuel in Pres. Duterte’s hometown in Davao City amid the West Philippine Sea dispute and lack of any military agreement with China?” asked Anakpawis Partylist Rep. Ariel Casilao in a statement yesterday.
Casilao, a native of Davao City, raised this question yesterday, saying “Davao City is becoming a logistical hub for China.”
He urged the Filipino people to “actively protest the transforming of the country as Chinese military base in the region” and press Pres. Duterte “to disclose his arrangements and concessions with the foreign superpower.”
“Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) military transport plane IL-76 landed in Davao City on June 8 and June 23. Those military cargo planes were used for Chinese interest and their concern is their fortifi cation of control over the West Philippine Sea,” he said.
Casilao said “it is outrageous that our country is directly or indirectly aiding them (Chinese).”
“Filipinos have the right and duty to deny the refueling if it is carrying out a mission detrimental to national interest,” he stressed.
“Denials of requests for refueling were done by other countries which believed refueling was contrary to their interests. That was what Spain and Malta did to Russian warships heading for Syria in 2016,” he said.
Casilao said Chinese aircraft refueling in Davao “would be transforming the country into a virtual logistical base. Yet the Constitution prohibits military bases or entry of troops in the country in the absence of a treaty.”
