A baffling lack of confidence on the part of President Benigno Simeon “BS” Aquino III in his own cabinet officials was belied by a revelation today that Senator Antonio Trillanes IV was authorised by the President to act as a “backroom negotiator” to China on behalf of the Philippines. In a heated argument between Trillanes and Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile in today’s Senate plenary session, Enrile pressed Trillanes to reveal the details of the discussions he had with former Philippine Ambassador to China Sonia Brady. Trillanes refused to answer Enrile’s queries, accusing the Senate President of being “out of order” supposedly for reading out loud a transcript of the discussion he had with Brady which he insisted was “confidential”.
Enrile accused Trillanes of compromising the sovereignty of the Philippines in his talks with Chinese officials. The allegations Enrile made against Trillanes were mainly around what he perceived to be attempts to pacify the Chinese government by:
(1) Downplaying the priority given by the Philippines to the Scarborough shoal conflict;
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(2) Undermining Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario by allegedly stating that del Rosario no longer enjoyed the confidence of the Filipino people; and,
(3) Highlighting that the Philippines lacked the military capability to make good on its territorial claims and appealing to the Chinese to consider the plight of poor Filipino fishermen who subsist on the disputed waters.
Even when facing a potentially hostile foreign government, Filipinos fail in epic proportions to put forth a united front. What is disturbing is that considering Trillanes was supposedly acting under the authority of President BS Aquino, he made representations with the Chinese government that ran counter to the discussions being undertaken with them by Secretary del Rosario who also answers to the President…
Reading Brady’s notes, Enrile said Trillanes, at one point, even asked businessman Manny Pangilinan to try to cajole del Rosario into softening his stance on the dispute with China.
Brady said Trillanes knew Pangilinan and del Rosario go way back, and that it was del Rosario who introduced Pangilinan to Indonesian shareholders for his purchase of the Philippine Long Distance Co. (PLDT). Trillanes supposedly said that del Rosario was the one who threatened the Yuchengco group to sell their stake in PLDT.
Nonetheless, Trillanes supposedly alleged that del Rosario was not for any peaceful settlement with China because he wants to boost Pangilinan’s chances in the exploration of the Recto Bank in the South China Sea. That part is also being claimed by China.
Trillanes also supposedly asked the Chinese which official in the country they would prefer talking to as an “alternative channel.” The Chinese officials supposedly asked for Vice President Jejomar Binay.
It was then that Trillanes suggested the name of Mar Roxas to become the channel between the Chinese and Malacañang. He also suggested that Roxas become DFA chief. “He’s even intriguing the president and the vice president,” Enrile said.
Why all the politics when all administrative lines of accountability in this fiasco lead back to no less than President BS Aquino, del Rosario being a Cabinet Secretary and Trillanes being an alleged presidential appointee to this special assignment? There was no need for politics, only strong and courageous leadership — something BS Aquino clearly did not exercise in this instance yet again. Why did President BS Aquino allegedly engage the services of Trillanes when he could have directly instructed del Rosario to act on these matters or directly given to the Secretary whatever new directions he wanted the negotiations to take?
It’s all a mystery as of now.
One point to consider is whether Enrile did the right thing by reading out loud in front of the media the contents of Brady’s discussion notes — mostly matters of critical concern to national security. These, after all, comprised information that reveals the strength (or, in this case, the weakness) of the Philippine position in its negotiations with China.
Indeed, the whole circus came about in the midst of a privilege speech Trillanes was giving on an unrelated matter, the passage of a bill to recognise the new province of Nueva Camarines — a bill Trillanes accused Enrile of railroading. Could it be that the topic of Trillanes’s alleged “backdoor” negotiations with China was never intended to be revealed to the public and, instead, discussed behind closed doors but came out as a result of a pikon episode on Enrile’s part?
Trillanes later went on record before the media to re-assert the “success” of his “mission” in China pointing to the resumption of banana exports there as “evidence” of favourable “results” coming out of this adventurism.
What else can we do but this:
Abangan ang susunod na kabanata.
benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.com.
Having difficulty concentrating amidst the laughter of my chinese colleagues!
Last week enrile said he knew nothing about technology.
This week enrile and p-noy show they know nothing about international diplomacy, and by airing their dirty laundry/divisions in public only adds to the farce/incompetence.
Island mentality meets political senility.
Trillanes as usual also shows stunted intellectual growth, and since he has never had an original thought of his own i can only assume he was acting under the orders of manny pangilinan
making a crisis out of a drama is becoming a regular event and the hallmark of p-noy et al.
Yes Minister was a big tv hit in uk but the debacles here would be too far fetched for any spoof show.
Unbelievable
Enrile is avoiding the issue about the splitting of districts in camsur and spouting this dispute against china which is considered secret and confidential. And the one that is all of this is no other than Gloria Magnanakaw Arroyo! Dapat tumigil na sya at ang pamilya nya sa pangugulo sa pulitika ng Pilipinas. Iba talaga nagagawa ng pera at laking buwaya.
Talagang wala ka nang mapost dito kundi paulit ulit nalang na pagsisisi kay gloria kahit WALA siyang kinalaman sa isyu. Sirang plaka ka talaga gunggong na fishball.
kasama sa speech kanina ni trillanes na kasabwat si gloria sa railroading ng paghihiwalay ng district ng camsur. kasi nandon si datu arroyo
kawawa ka naman, nagpapauto ka kay trilianes. Sa bagay parehas naman kayong walang utak.
Kawawang fishball, halatang ubos ka na ng mapopost dito kaya inuulit mo lang ang dating gawi mo.
So you have the new iPhone 5 na pala, but still the same utak talangka.
https://www.facebook.com/bingrj <<<fishball?
Basta sasabihin lang pala na kasalanan ni Gloria, maniniwala na si fishbola…hihihi.
Careful fishball the new cyber-crime law on libel has a double edge. If it can work for state/political entities, it can also work for victims of state persecution and vilification.
“Gloria Magnanakaw Arroyo!” is a libelous statement. Unless of course you know that the new cyber-law works only for state and political entities.
And, as always, Fishball is avoiding the real issue of BS’s total lack of leadership skills. Only a non-man like BS would send a confirmed traitor to negotiate with the Chinese while simultaneously undermining his own cabinet. Even for someone as stupid as you, Fishball, it must be clear that BS is completely incapable of being president. He’s corrupted every arm of government and now he is poisoning his own cabinet and compromising the sovereignty of the Philippines. That’s treason.
That’s fishball for you, he always desperately try to change the subject and pin the blame on the previous administration even though his president has been in power for 2 years already. When will he stop drinking the yellow kool aid?
Don’t you ever get tires repeating the same old useless and baseless accusation? I don’t know whether to praise your stubbornness or curse your stupidity…..
And in all of this, not a single individual is acting in the interests of the Philippines.
No wonder Hu Jintao couldn’t be bothered making time for a meeting with BS at APEC.
they didnt have the similar schedule thats why the bilateral meeting did not happen.
Meh, excuses excuses. Puro nalang palusot. Kawawa ka naman
Maybe your hero was excited to meet you fishball. Little tryst after the twist.
And tell me again, Mr Fishballs, how sending a person that has already turned his weapons on his own countrymen to negotiate with a potential enemy is a good thing for the Philippines??
Fishball, they didn’t meet because the Chinese know that BS is an empty puppet who is incapable of serious negotiations. They would hold him in even greater contempt after this latest episode of sending a confirmed traitor to negotiate on behalf of the Philippines – who has also proven his lack of integrity by turning traitor on the administration he is supposed to represent and, of course, his own nation. Once a traitor, always a traitor: just ask JPE.
This administration is imploding. This latest episode only reinforces the fact that no one is leading this government. The mouthpiece of the President, Lacierda, does not know why Trillanes was appointed. Trillanes demolishes all the work done by formal foreign affairs authorities and where are we after that? Still hiding behind USA’s skirt. Watch out for falling debris!
This Dude, Trillanes is a military adventurist; a political opportunist; and a Hacienda Luisita Swine. Aquino bypassed, his Secretary of Foreign Affairs; did not even inform the Senate and the Congress. That he is appointing a Senator; who have no experience and knowledge in foreign diplomacy, and diplomatic protocols. Trillanes gave away Philippine territories, in exchange of Banana Exports. What kind of insanity is this? Trillanes is even boastful of his stupidity. This Dude is really doing nonsense and is talking nonsense…
I love how he accused the old man of being a GMA loyalist. I thought he was present during the CJ Impeachment Trial. If he was a loyalist, he sure has a weird way of showing it. Politicians treat us like we are all of Fishball level intellect.
That is a big possibility. If the allegation is true, Enrile is in the wrong for doing that. One, it’s stupid to expose unnecessarily diplomatic negotiations involving security matters. Two, Enrile should have ask permission from people concerned that he’s going to talk about matters that are subject of confidentiality. Lastly, politics, as an instrument to blackmail someone, should not be resorted to at the expense of the country’s interest.
Enrile is shrewd enough to know which “state secret” can be revealed or not. One simple question: do you really think Trillanes is valuable as a backdoor negotiator from the get go?
As soon as this scheme was hatched, the savvy Chinese would already be clued in that this backdoor negotiation does not follow protocol. It would not be too far also to expect, given how “secrets” go in this country, that a backdoor negotiation not following protocol, constitutional protocol in fact, would cause a scandal once revealed, and whatever was agreed upon would be put in jeopardy. With these (see also that there is no need to even delve into the backgrounds of the personalities involved), it would be logical to conclude that a backdoor negotiator like Trillanes should not be very valuable at all because China has already taken everything that went through this channel with a grain of salt.
That is not a simple question. One, we don’t know the coverage and the depth of the negotiation he’s having with the Chinese. Second, we don’t know the kind of authority P-Noy granted him to conduct talk with the Chinese. Lastly, we are also in the dark as to the rank and authority of those people who are talking with him. Were they authorized by the Chinese gov’t.? Are both parties capable of entering an official commitment? We don’t know.
So, you see, to answer your question, we have to address those issues first. However, for purposes of discussion, granting those facts do not exist, I would surmise, in response to your question, that Trillanes, given the fact that the president authorized and trusted him to pursue the negotiation with the Chinese is proof how valuable he is as a negotiator.
You say you don’t know enough. You could have stopped there, and I would find that acceptable. Yet you went on and made a conclusion. Nice.
Eh alam naman natin na diktador yan si AbNoy kaya ala siyang pakialam kung sangayon yun ibang mga sanga ng gobyerno sa pamamaraan niya. Ibinebenta na ata tayo sa intsik, basta’t meron lang kikitain ang kanyang mga KKKK. Sila-sila lang yan—Pinaghahatian nalang halos nila etong pilipinas.
wow. ang galing ng analysis. parang hasang-hasa sa geopolitics…..
puno’t dulo pala ng lahat ay si pnoy….. wow….. galing…. ang tatalino niyo…..
hmmm…so sino pasimuno?
This entire episode is just astonishing. Detailing a known traitor who staged two weenie-ass rebellion attempts against a president the Chinese actually respected to go and talk to them about a delicate sovereignty dispute in which the country has exactly zero to support its position? Wow.
On a side note, can we banish Fishball to comment purgatory? I think we’ve had enough of it derailing every topic with the same tiresome irrelevancies.
Yeah, I agree.
@fishball, your next comment better impress me with its uplifted logical rigour and substance (whatever position you might take on any issue). Otherwise, you may start kissing your comment privileges here goodbye.
Finally Benigno it’s really tiring listening to his useless and baseless comments. I’d say that his sole purpose in commenting here is to malign GMA and truth be told is getting redundant.
I think that’s uncalled for. Suggesting on the board to the powers that be that someone should be banished or expelled from the blog just because you do not agree with what he’s saying is simply wrong if not entirely pusillanimous .
I agree with the idea that fishball is not entirely innocent on allegations against him and I sometimes call his attention on this but did we bother to read those who are responding to him? Truth be told, most of the responses on fishball’s post are bordering on attacks and personal insults. His comments of being a pro-Noynoy is usually is met by personal insults and criticisms about his person and what the respondents plans to do to him if they have the chance. It’s all personal.
My question is, why are you people wasting time to respond by writing off topic to fishball’s posts? If you think he’s not making sense, why respond? If you do not agree with what he said and you want to contradict it go ahead. But please don’t make it a personal grudge or create a hostile conversation because you dislike him. It is counter-productive.
If you think you are better than him, ignore the man. Focus on the issue and chose your battle. Right now, fishball is winning the war because you are all biting the bait.
As I am one of the powers-that-be, it is beneath my purview to be pussillanimous about anything. I might have addressed the same commentary heads-up to you as well, since you are perpetuating the problem by discussing a troll, which is not the subject of this article or the substantial part of the ensuing conversation.
We do have written guidelines, you might familiarize yourself with them.
Again, are you reading the responses to fishball’s posts? I’m not defending him nor I belong to any side. I’m just stating a fact.
It’s a two-way thing. There are two sides of the story and if you think that you only belong to the other side, and being the powers that be, why not just do which will make you happy?
Suggesting to banish or expel somebody reeks of mob mentality.
With due respect, I’m familiar with your guidelines, and not to be rude, more than the others here. I do not call people names nor use provocative words just because I do not agree with the other party.
I was just force to comment on what you said because it was very clear that fireball is not the only one who is guilty.
Dude, it’s been decided that Fishball’s “comments” no longer add value to the discussion here as they are fundamentally not different to any previous one’s he’s made.
Just be thankful you’re not tagged as such along with him.
Move along. I won’t ask you a second time.
Some people nga naman talaga. Sinabi na ngang, I won’t ask a second time e… 😀
Fishball’s comments no longer welcome??? How will she make quota? Will Minister Ricky reassign her to another website? Is that libel?
@jona-s
fishbola wasn’t banned for being pro-Noynoy but for being pro-stupidity.
Well, if that’s the case, don’t you think those who responds to him incessantly also should be banned for patronizing stupidity?
Just thinking.
@jona-s
Nope, especially when they disagree and correct him. You on the other hand are advocating on his behalf, which patronizes him.
They ‘correct’ him by saying he’s stupid, etc.? That’s not correcting that’s ridiculing. Of course, for you, I’m patronizing him because I do not agree with your insults and attacks.
I don’t have to side with him because he’s winning the game against you guys. Imagine, several of you against him but still you cannot defeat him and out-argue him?
You need somebody from the upper echelon, from the big guns, to protect and side with you. You have to resort to mob mentality to silence someone you disagree with.
So, in reality, you are no different from Noynoy!
He is “winning” in the same sense that cockroaches are able to win in evolution — by sheer simplicity.
The commentor known as “Fishball” can single-handedly take up a pro-Admin position here because he merely parrots the Yellowist tagline without having to think while those who respond to him (at least most of them) respond with well-thought out arguments. There is no “out-arguing” on Fishball’s part. Only spamming.
Going back to the cockroach analogy, cockroaches merely multiply in hordes while humans battle them with technological weapons. A losing proposition of course. Unfortunately for humans there is no “somebody from the upper echelon” in the real world who can simply click the “Spam” button on cockroaches. So we are doomed to waste time and resources battling mindless vermin. Life ain’t fair, as I said. And Nature doesn’t care.
Consider the above another implicit albeit “childish” warning to you.
Much obliged. 😀
@jona-s
If you find yourselves personally insulted by simple truths, so be it. You need to learn to deal with it.
He doesn’t even support his claims with arguments, much less “winning” arguments—He provides nothing but claims with nothing to support them. You’re simply fond of making up your own report or score cards aren’t yah!
You’re barking at the wrong tree. Rooting for things PeeNoy is what constitutes mob mentality.
When you decide to snap out of your delusions, that’s when you can speak of “reality” with some credibility.
Hope that helps.
How I wish this fishball comments should not be deleted. It’s a documentation on how a penoyista’s mind works.
He mirrors the Malacanang rhetoric.
A tale straight from a Tom Clancy novel. In the old days the penalty for treason is death by musketry or at the gallows. Too bad that doesn’t apply now. Apparently this administration has a penchant for back channel talks. Remember the secret meeting PNoy had with the MILF chairman in Tokyo? They have yet to reveal what was discussed then, what we do know is that $5-M changed hands allegedly as development aid and to honor a previous commitment made by PGMA, of all people, to the MILF. I say that is consorting with the enemy – high treason no less in any book but not so in the yellow handbook.
Now this sordid episode of a Senator waltzing in Beijing on the behest of PNoy. Dafuq! No doubt this explains the flurry of feel-good surveys that came out in rapid succession; they were meant to temper the fallout from a tempest they knew was about to boil over. Tricky, huh?
Are we still too naive to think any of these politicians is genuinely concerned about the welfare of the Filipino people?
Not sure about you guys but when I see in the same sentence “Noynoy” + “Trillanes + “secret” + “backdoor” , my thoughts go to an uncomfortable place. Maybe I should ask Kate since she seems to be the GRP authority if ever there was one. Oh, is that libel?
Exactly Ben. Please refer to my reply to Mr. Fishballs.
The secret talks between the state and the enemies of the state(MILF/CPP-NPA-NDF) still remain secret… Along with this new revelation.
I thought we were the boss? The Sovereign Filipino People have the right to know about the real factual truths which affects the continued survival of the republic, democracy and our territorial integrity.
They have to establish there is malice involved to qualify it as libel. The way things are unraveling, they are the ones who should go to the dungeons for malice is evident when they resorted to these back channel talks. Del Rosario must be hurting to be shunted aside just like that; it’s a breach in protocol any way you see it.
“Noynoy†+ “Trillanes + “secret†+ “backdoor”…..it leaves little to be imagines doesn’t it Gogs?
I think I gave Kate an idea for next blog contribution.
Sorry senility, already said that. Reminds me a bit of dialogue from Weird Science. Chips , Dips …… Uttered by the Lady in Red herself.
Senility again, Kelly Lebrock. Can I legally protect myself against libel by pleading senility?
The Senate has managed to impeach a Chief Justice on the ground of mere administrative omission.
Now, a Senator of this Republic has clearly committed at least treason and betrayal of public trust, BOTH classified as high crimes in the Constitution and yet no one is thinking of filing ethics complaint to throw this person out of the Senate and thereafter a criminal complaint before a competent court so this same convicted rebel military adventurist will rot in jail.
Is this the Judicial Reform which Pnoy spoke of?
Which brings me to another point, if what Trillanes did can be considered treason and betrayal of public trust, does it not follow then that Pnoy also committed the same? Remember, actions of the agent bind the principal.
LOL! Is this treason?
Is it libel too?
I was referring to the novato diplomat.
Yes Santa! The Philippines DILG secretary is the new presidential envoy to China! Does this mean good bye Trillanes?
Please see the link below…
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/274829/news/nation/in-wake-of-senate-blow-up-pnoy-to-name-roxas-as-presidential-envoy-to-china
It’s part of the 80% workload Pnoy promised to assign to Roxas should the former win as president.
nope. he’s still in official capacity.
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/274999/news/nation/pnoy-says-china-picked-trillanes-as-backchannel-negotiator