Last July 24, Filipinos woke up to the sound of heavy and widespread rain and raging flood all over Manila. Typhoon Carina was worse than what Metro Manila suffered during Typhoon Ondoy in 2009. Mother nature appeared to disprove the claim made by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., in his State of the Nation Address (SONA), that his administration has completed 5,500 flood control projects, costing almost 500 billion pesos of taxpayers hard-earned money.
Filipinos were left wondering where the projects were and why these projects did nothing to prevent the massive flooding they again suffered from.
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No American Help Came for the Filipinos
Aside from the flood control projects, which Senator Imee Marcos also revealed cost almost P1.4 billion everyday, Filipinos were also wondering where the Americans were. After all, the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) bases, majority of which are in Luzon, were touted by Filipino officials to help the Philippines in disaster relief operations but ironically, not a single helicopter or American servicemen, were seen helping the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) personnel. The valiant Philippine uniformed personnel, who were seen rescuing helpless victims were also under equipped in the massive need to rescue victims and clear roads of landslides and rock slides, caused by the heavy and continuous rainfall.
Why is the Philippines Media Quiet on the Massive Lies?
Philippine media outlets, including investigative reporters from GMA News and ABS-CBN and fake news checkers like Rappler and Verafiles made did not question the veracity of the 5,500 flood control projects made during Marcos’s SONA or the statements of politicians that claimed the US military in the Philippines will help the Filipinos!
They chose to focus on the statements made by officials who blamed the high tide and the indiscriminate disposal of garbage as the main culprits which aggravated the flood which inundated the national capital region and nearby provinces.
The media touted the $500 million PLEDGE by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who visited Manila on July 30, for a 2 + 2 dialogue with their counterparts, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro. This was the fourth 2 + 2 dialogue between US and Philippines officials as part of the Indo-Pacific strategy of the US in the region. Did Gibo or Manalo ask the Americans for their promised help?
There has been no visible presence of American troops stationed in the Philippines actively helping their counterparts in rescue and relief operations. It’s still up in the air as to when the promise of aid will be fulfilled as Blinken “pledged” $1M for the victims of Carina, which is roughly P58M only.
During the last Balikatan exercises held on April 22 to May 8, the US even brought in a
Typhoon missile battery and stationed it in Ilocos Norte, well within striking distance of China. This missile system launches Tomahawk cruise missiles, which are mainly launched by US Navy vessels and submarines. The deployment caused not only China, but also Russia, to issue warnings to the Philippine government, saying that it does not serve to bring down tensions in the region, and will be enough cause for Russia and China to point their missiles on the Philippines.
The $500M “military aid” to the Philippines is by no means free because the monies are to be used as credit for the purchase of military equipment for the AFP, as part of its continuing modernization program. Many of these military aid are secondhand and already considered as junk in the US, which might even endanger the lives of our soldiers.
America has openly admitted they are implementing their own first island strategy for their defense, using the Philippines as a proxy to contain China. America’s focus is still on its self-interest of protecting the US mainland, ensuring the profits of its military-industrial complex and using the Philippines as its pawn in the region.
Last July 21, the Department of Foreign Affairs announced that the Philippines and China have come to a mutual agreement on the RoRe missions to the BRP Sierra Madre grounded on Ayungin Shoal. This was in the aftermath of the violent confrontation between the Philippine and Chinese coast guard personnel on July 17, where a Philippine Navy NAVSOG member lost a finger. The Marcos government toned down its anti-China rhetoric and resorted to diplomacy in a bid to resolve the issue, after China showed its hardline stance and no American help came, despite the claim that assistance was offered but declined, by the Philippine government.
Filipinos and the media should question the government about the true cost of the EDCA bases for the Philippines. The US is not only not paying any rental for the use of the bases but have placed the Philippines at greater risks against the enemies of the US.
The US military aid has spent millions for the expansion of what they deem to be essential such as the Basa Air Base in Pampanga, the Fernando Air Base in Batangas, and the old Subic naval base in Zambales, but havr not lifted a finger to help Filipinos in their time of need.
Typhoon Carina has proven the US, and our own Filipino officials, have lied to the people.
The EDCA bases are not for disaster relief but in reality, they are forward operating bases of the US Indo-Pacific Command, using the Philippines against China.
The Philippine Constitution expressly prohibits the presence of nuclear weapons in the country. This has already been repeatedly violated, including the most recent illegal stationing of the Typhoon missile battery in Ilocos Norte.
Why is the Philippines government extremely secretive about the activities of US and Japan military forces in the country?
Aside from the US, the Philippine government has also signed a Reciprocal Access Agreement with Japan, which allows Japanese troops to join their Philippine counterparts in military exercises and joint naval patrols. These are all part and parcel of the trilateral alliance between the US, Japan and the Philippines under JAPHUS.
Who is profiting from all this?
Poor Filipinos are left to fend for themselves, except for the ayuda distributed by the government and politicians who are already campaigning for votes as the 2025 election draws near. You have to wonder when Filipinos will realize that both the government and the Americans, continue to treat them as fools.
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The Obama Stooges running US foreign policy, Blinken, Austin, and Sullivan, are serial liars who cannot be trusted.