Mayor Baste Duterte's recent statements misrepresent the Philippines' balanced approach to China and the root causes of tensions in the West Philippine Sea. His two key claims—that using Chinese products implies support for economic cooperation over military confrontation, and that tensions in the WPS stem solely from U.S.-China great... power competition—reveal a fundamental misunderstanding of our national interests. Mayor Duterte's suggestion that everyday Filipinos using Chinese-made goods (such as clothing or electronics) should somehow accept economic cooperation as a substitute for confronting China's aggression in the WPS is a false equivalence. Our bilateral engagement with the PRC is multifaceted: it includes robust economic partnerships in trade, investment, and infrastructure, which we actively pursue and have not abandoned. However, these ties do not—and must not—compromise our territorial integrity or the rights enshrined in the 2016 Arbitral Award and UNCLOS. Standing firm against China's illegal claims and aggressive actions in the WPS is not an "either-or" choice between commerce and confrontation. It is a non-negotiable assertion of Philippine agency as an independent sovereign nation. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s administration has demonstrated this balance: we continue to trade with China while enhancing our defensive posture. His attribution of WPS conflicts to "great power competition" between the U.S. and China oversimplifies the issue and absolves the aggressor. While superpower dynamics play a role in the broader Indo-Pacific, the immediate flashpoints in the WPS—such as the blocking of Philippine resupply missions in previous years or the harassment of Filipino fishing vessels—are direct results of China's excessive maritime claims and aggressive tactics. These actions have victimized ordinary Filipino fishermen, denying them access to traditional fishing grounds within our exclusive economic zone, long before any escalation in U.S. involvement. This is not a proxy war orchestrated by Washington; it is a violation of international law by Beijing. Filipino fisherfolk from Pangasinan, Mindoro, Palawan, and Zambales have faced water cannons, laser blinding lights, and vessel ramming—not because of American warships, but because of China's monstrous coast guard vessels and maritime militia enforcing fictitious sovereignty. Our response under President Marcos reflects national resolve, not external puppeteering; it includes diplomatic protests, multilateral advocacy, and bolstering our own capabilities through the AFP and PCG. Mayor Duterte’s narrative conveniently ignores the track record of his father's administration. Despite President Rodrigo Duterte's overt courtship of the PRC—including downplaying the arbitral victory and pivoting toward Beijing—Chinese bullying persisted unabated. Fishermen were still driven away, AFP rotations to BRP Sierra Madre were obstructed, and PCG vessels faced collisions and intimidation. Billions in promised Chinese investments to support his ambitious “Build, Build, Build” project did not materialize, while core WPS grievances remained unresolved. This history underscores that concessions do not yield peace; they invite further encroachments. If there is one thing that Mayor Duterte said correctly, it is that before opening our mouths, we should ensure that our statements are anchored in truth and facts, rather than mere insinuations that promote a pro-China narrative.show more

Don’t expect a smart argument from someone who just likes to look tough and smart but talks nonsense and is unprincipled. Look at his sibling: she claims to support the arbitral award, but when asked about her father’s actions, amnesia struck her and she said she doesn’t know.

Duterte Magic is dead.

Doesn't Baste realize that China continues to trade with us and still continues to bully us over the WPS, in the same way that we still trade with China and continue defending our rights over the WPS.

With all due respect po, if you counter these sort of statements from pro-China dummies with long explanations it will not counter their propaganda on majority of our people. We need an approach like Atty. Claire's to countering the mundane, populist themes of the Dutertes.

Local po ang gamit ko.. Pero mahal ko ang Pilipinas..! Ang sakit sa puso ng magulang yung tatlong anak mo ay walang talino..!

LAHAT ng anak ni Digong BOBO! 😅

What do we expect from someone like baste?! Just another duterte bonehead!

Lahat ng anak ni Digong eh ISANG MALAKING BASURA kaya siguro yung tatay, baka mamaya rinding rindi na sa mga ginagawa ng mga anak niya which leads us that the siblings may have a major contribution to oust their own father for Power. Baste is so effin imbecile.

Mga traydor at tuta ng Komunistang Tsina

Perfectly said, Commodore Tarriela. 🇵🇭⚓ Mayor Baste needs reminding that loyalty to the Philippines means standing up for our sovereignty, not making excuses for an aggressor. Using Chinese-made phones doesn’t mean surrendering the West Philippine Sea. The truth is simple: China is the one crossing into our waters, harassing our fishermen, and ignoring international law. This isn’t about the U.S. it’s about defending what’s ours. We can trade with anyone, but no trade deal or cheap import is worth our dignity. The West Philippine Sea is not for sale not to Beijing, not to anyone. 🇵🇭💪

Trying very freaking hard to sound inteligent just like his father 😂😂 The intonation and all, but you can clearly tell he has nothing between his ears. His statements has no substance whatsoever..

Let's be honest. Halos lahat ng Duterte eh bopols talaga. Hype and overrated lang ng mga trolls at bloggers kaya nauto ang ibang panatiko para di na maging critical sa pag iisip.

Dont open your mouth using English language kaya noh, Baste?US language kasi yan, so dont speak rin English ever , not one English word your entire life, ska ka magsalita

Kung makapag salita yung acting mayor, parang seasoned at earned ang status nya sa buhay😂.

🚨Strategic Realism🚨 Critics say Mayor Baste Duterte “misunderstands” the West Philippine Sea issue, but in truth, it’s his critics who refuse to see reality beyond their talking points. Mayor Baste never said we should surrender the WPS. What he said, and what many Filipinos quietly understand, is that shouting “war” while depending on China for our clothes, phones, and machinery is hypocrisy. He’s calling for consistency, not submission. ⚖️ 1. Economic Truths Can’t Be Ignored China is the Philippines’ number one trading partner, ₱1.2 trillion worth of imports and billions in investments flow into our economy yearly. That includes construction materials, electronics, and agricultural products that sustain jobs and prices. You cannot just “cut ties” with your biggest supplier and expect the poor not to suffer. What Mayor Baste is saying is this: before you play hero with foreign flags behind you, make sure your people can afford rice and fuel. Economic cooperation is not weakness. It’s strategic survival in a world where small nations must balance interests, not emotions. 🌏 2. The WPS Issue Is Bigger Than Pride Yes, China has its faults, but let’s not pretend the U.S. is our savior. The WPS tension didn’t start yesterday. It escalated when Washington began its “Pivot to Asia,” using smaller nations like chess pieces to box in Beijing. Mayor Baste is right: this is a great power rivalry, and we are caught in the middle. The U.S. talks of freedom of navigation, yet it never signed UNCLOS, the very law it tells us to follow. That’s double standard at its finest. Let’s be honest, if war breaks out, who bleeds first? Not the U.S. Marines in Guam. Filipino soldiers and fishermen. 🧠 3. Pragmatism Is Not Cowardice When Mayor Baste says we should focus on peace and cooperation, he’s speaking the language of pragmatism. His father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, proved that diplomacy, even unconventional diplomacy, opened doors for investment, workers, and calm. Under his father’s term, there was no war, no missile strike, no mass displacement. The country traded, built, and survived. That’s not surrender, that’s leadership rooted in reality. ⚓ 4. Balance, Not Blind Loyalty Being pro-Filipino doesn’t mean being anti-China or pro-America. It means being smart enough to deal with both. The Marcos administration’s “defense posture” only works if it doesn’t cross into provocation. 🚩Mayor Baste’s reminder is simple: “Before we speak, let’s know what we’re saying.” That’s not ignorance, that’s wisdom. It’s a warning against emotional foreign policy that could drag us into a fight we can’t win. 💥 The Real Point Critics twist his words because it’s easier to paint him as naïve than to admit he’s right, that war talk sells headlines, but peace keeps the country alive. He’s not defending China. He’s defending Filipino lives from the arrogance of those who think sovereignty means suicide. 🇵🇭 Final Words True patriotism isn’t measured by how loud you curse China or cheer the U.S. It’s measured by how well you protect your people, their livelihood, their safety, and their peace. That’s what Mayor Baste stands for: Peace with dignity, trade without surrender, and courage without recklessness.

Baste, before you open your mouth, internalize last para. stop being a clown. or move to China.

Bakit niyo pa kasi binibigyan ng pansin ang mga Duterte eh alam niyo naman na maka-tsina at mga traydor sila?

Baste Duterte is demonstrating his lack of understanding in d discourse abt d current landscape of int’l trades w/China & d wanton subservience of d Du30 regime w/🇨🇳. Du30 regime kow-tows w/🇨🇳 & it’s questionable overstayed ctzens w/illegal biz n d 🇵🇭 . That’s Baste’s std norms.

Kung ang mga flood controls, mga daan at mga tulay ay gawa sa substandards na pinagtitiisan ng mga pinoy yun pa kayang mga damit at eletronics na puro substandard at disposable na made in China ang di mapagtitiisan.... Pinayabang pa ni Baste ang low quality este no quality!

You cannot explain things like these to Baste. His logical range is limited.

The reasoning of those low class trolls. now i know where the DDS trolls gets their stupidity and who pays them to spread similar narratives in order to serve the Chinese.

Hindi naman naluklok yan dahil sa talino nya. 🤭🤭🤭

Baste is not exactly the credible and intelligent sort to be issuing forth on foreign relations and bilateral issues.

Hala, Baste. Before you lecture us on balance, you should revisit your father’s track record. Despite six years of appeasement and “friendship,” China’s bullying didn’t stop. Concessions didn’t bring peace. Instead, they encouraged more aggression. STFU, please.

Tigilan na nga iyang bravado vs China dahil in times of aggressions water canon lang di pa ninyo malabanan ng harapan ng water canon rin, Tapos iiyak lang kayo at magsusumbong kay uncle sam, dadaldal at paawa sa at magpapagalit sa taong bayan sa press,Hanggang protest lang

It pains me knowing our own fishermen can’t even sail freely in waters that belong to us. China’s aggression keeps robbing Filipinos of that same peace and pride. We cannot trade with China not at the cost of our dignity or the safety of those who live off our seas.

Pasencya ka na Commodore, Surfing labg ata ang alam nyan mayor na yan! dont worry ddshits lang nman ang naniniwala jan sa kumag na yan eh!

Balik 2016 nanaman yung script ng bobong baste. Tatak duterte nga. Saksakan ng tanga.

Pro-Beijing ang DUwag?

Look Baste, Singapore has no resources and yet ranked number 1 in GDP all over the world!!! She relied on her people! Dont use that “Made in China” propaganda on me

The root cause of tensions in the WPS is the lack of a diplomatic solution, Tarriela. Stop being a crybaby. You are a disgrace to the uniform.

tanga, mura kase dun kaya dun ginagawa sa china pero di purong china yung produkto. bobo mo trying hard duterte accent kapang hayop ka

🚨Strategic Realism🚨 Critics say Mayor Baste Duterte “misunderstands” the West Philippine Sea issue, but in truth, it’s his critics who refuse to see reality beyond their talking points. Mayor Baste never said we should surrender the WPS. What he said, and what many Filipinos quietly understand, is that shouting “war” while depending on China for our clothes, phones, and machinery is hypocrisy. He’s calling for consistency, not submission. ⚖️ 1. Economic Truths Can’t Be Ignored China is the Philippines’ number one trading partner, ₱1.2 trillion worth of imports and billions in investments flow into our economy yearly. That includes construction materials, electronics, and agricultural products that sustain jobs and prices. You cannot just “cut ties” with your biggest supplier and expect the poor not to suffer. What Mayor Baste is saying is this: before you play hero with foreign flags behind you, make sure your people can afford rice and fuel. Economic cooperation is not weakness. It’s strategic survival in a world where small nations must balance interests, not emotions. 🌏 2. The WPS Issue Is Bigger Than Pride Yes, China has its faults, but let’s not pretend the U.S. is our savior. The WPS tension didn’t start yesterday. It escalated when Washington began its “Pivot to Asia,” using smaller nations like chess pieces to box in Beijing. Mayor Baste is right: this is a great power rivalry, and we are caught in the middle. The U.S. talks of freedom of navigation, yet it never signed UNCLOS, the very law it tells us to follow. That’s double standard at its finest. Let’s be honest, if war breaks out, who bleeds first? Not the U.S. Marines in Guam. Filipino soldiers and fishermen. 🧠 3. Pragmatism Is Not Cowardice When Mayor Baste says we should focus on peace and cooperation, he’s speaking the language of pragmatism. His father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, proved that diplomacy, even unconventional diplomacy, opened doors for investment, workers, and calm. Under his father’s term, there was no war, no missile strike, no mass displacement. The country traded, built, and survived. That’s not surrender, that’s leadership rooted in reality. ⚓ 4. Balance, Not Blind Loyalty Being pro-Filipino doesn’t mean being anti-China or pro-America. It means being smart enough to deal with both. The Marcos administration’s “defense posture” only works if it doesn’t cross into provocation. 🚩Mayor Baste’s reminder is simple: “Before we speak, let’s know what we’re saying.” That’s not ignorance, that’s wisdom. It’s a warning against emotional foreign policy that could drag us into a fight we can’t win. 💥 The Real Point Critics twist his words because it’s easier to paint him as naïve than to admit he’s right, that war talk sells headlines, but peace keeps the country alive. He’s not defending China. He’s defending Filipino lives from the arrogance of those who think sovereignty means suicide. 🇵🇭 Final Words True patriotism isn’t measured by how loud you curse China or cheer the U.S. It’s measured by how well you protect your people, their livelihood, their safety, and their peace. That’s what Mayor Baste stands for: Peace with dignity, trade without surrender, and courage without recklessness.