Thursday, April 24, 2008 Spratlys deal probe may be derailed: lawmaker
THE absence of presidential son Pampanga Representative Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo might disrupt the initial hearing of the House committee on foreign affairs into the government's controversial Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) with China and Vietnam.
Cebu Representative Antonio Cuenco, chairman of the committee, said the committee on rules chaired by majority leader Arthur Defensor has informed him that his panel might not be able to conduct the joint hearing next Tuesday because Arroyo, who chairs the committee on energy, remains indisposed.
"Mikey (Arroyo) is not here. He's abroad. Now, the question is, can we proceed with the hearing or not?" Cuenco said.
The foreign affairs committee will lead the investigation with the committees on energy and national defense chaired by La Union Representative Arthur Celeste.
The JMSU, a gathering of information on the possible oil, gas and other mineral deposits, was allegedly forged in exchange of bribe-tainted deals like the national broadband network (NBN) and the Cyber-Education project with China.
The agreement, which was signed in 2005, involves the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC), China National Offshore Oil Co. and Vietnam Oil and Gas Corp. (PetroVietnam).
Government critics said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo could be liable for treason for allowing the joint exploration of disputed islands in exchange for soft loans from China worth billions of dollars such as the anomalous US$329 million NBN-ZTE deal.
Cuenco said after he informed the rules committee that his panel is already prepared to push through with the inquiry, the staff told him that they might have to postpone the investigation because of Congressman Arroyo's absence.
"They say the chairman (Mikey) must be there," he said, insisting that the senior vice chairman of every committee is authorized to preside proceedings whenever the chairman is absent.
The joint panel will summon PNOC president Antonio Cailao and other officials to shed light on the JMSU.
Aside from Cailao, the Cuenco panel may also subpoena former PNOC president Eduardo Manalac.
Cuenco said the committee will also subpoena the original copy of the agreement signed in 2005.
Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said he could not attend the House investigation into the JMSU because of the Supreme Court (SC) decision on the issue of executive privilege.
Teodoro said he still needs to seek the President's "guidance" on the issue since it involves diplomatic and national security issues.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr. defended the government's stance to stonewall the passage of a bill, which sought to define the baseline of Philippine territory, saying this could only exacerbate diplomatic relations with China.
Gonzalez said legislators should exercise prudence in dealing with the Spratlys issue as the Philippines "cannot afford to go to war with China."
He said House Bill (HB) 3216, authored by Cuenco, has been met with objections from both Chinese and Vietnamese governments.
Ratifying this bill, Gonzalez said, might further exacerbate the souring diplomatic relations between the Philippines and China, pointing out that China has sent a "note" to the Philippine Embassy in Beijing last December protesting HB 3216.
"If we include the Kalayaan in our baselines, we will have to include the Chinese portions and the Vietnamese-occupied portions. How can we include these in our baselines? We might have to go to war against China and Vietnam if we include their claimed territories under our baselines," he said.
The baseline bill defines the country's archipelagic baselines to include the Kalayaan Island Group and Scarborough Shoal in the Spratlys, which are also being claimed in part or in whole by Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, China and Brunei.
The Philippines is a signatory under the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea (Unclos) establishing a comprehensive framework for the use of all ocean space and determining the maritime boundaries for coastal states.
Under the accord, each state is authorized to explore and exploit resources on its continental shelf and the adjacent seabed up to 200 miles from its shore. In cases where the margins exceed 200 miles from the baselines, these states can assert their respective claims to these areas.
Gonzalez said portions of these islands have already been fortified and claimed by China and Vietnam, while the Philippines has yet to make an affirmation that these lands form part of its territory.
"We cannot reach a possibility of fighting there by asserting our manhood because China and Vietnam went to war there already. Brunei is claiming, Malaysia is claiming. There is yet no affirmation that that is ours. We should be prudent because we cannot go to war with anybody," he said. (WV/ECV/Sunnex)
