THE so-called “gentleman’s agreement between former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte and China on the non-supply of the BRP Sierra Madre grounded in Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) is “constitutionally void.”

This is according to House Deputy Majority Leader and Mandaluyong Lone District Rep. Neptali “Boyet” Gonzales II, chairman of the House Special Committee on the West Philippine Sea, who said that like President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr., he too was “horrified” by the idea of compromising the country’s rights over WPS.

“Like the President, I am truly horrified by the idea that our country’s territory, sovereignty and sovereign rights may have been compromised by a deal guised as an “agreement” to maintain the peace and status quo in the WPS,” Gonzales, a veteran House leader and former Majority Leader, said.

“The so-called ‘agreement,’ if any, is constitutionally void since it is tantamount to the surrender of our country’s sovereign rights over our EEZ. Such an agreement will be equivalent to a new National Policy, which must be enshrined in a Treaty to be submitted to the Senate for ratification before it can take effect,” he added.

Former presidential spokesman Harry Roque recently confirmed this secret pact of Duterte with China.

Gonzales reiterated that Ayungin Shoal is part of the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) as reaffirmed by the 2016 arbitral ruling on the South China Sea arbitration case.

“Likewise, under Article 56 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the coastal state, which in this case is clearly the Philippines, has the right to build and maintain structures within its EEZ,” he said.

“This would clearly mean that our country has every right to protect and safeguard all features within our EEZ including the Ayungin Shoal.”

Assuming, Gonzales said, that there is indeed an agreement between Duterte and China, it will not be an enforceable agreement.

“There are still some necessary criteria that we should satisfy before it is considered legally binding here in the Philippines. First, for the alleged ‘agreement’ to be enforceable, it must be in the form of an Executive Agreement. Since there is no official record under our records, the alleged ‘agreement’ may not be considered an Executive Agreement,” Gonzales pointed out.

Since it is not in the form of a treaty or an Executive Agreement, then the “secret pact” of Duterte with China must not be honored in the Philippines.

“The more important question we should ask is whether it was even wise for anyone, no less than the President of the land, to even consider, much more agree to the conditions of this so-called ‘gentleman’s agreement,’” Gonzales asked.

“We should ask if this supposed deal really have any value to the ordinary Filipino people. If there is truly an agreement, did it achieve its objective of peace and status quo?” he added.

He urged the Filipino people not to “fall prey to this false narrative” that it is the Philippine government that is causing the rising tensions in the WPS.

“Since when do we blame a bullied person for being bullied? Also, if they claim that revealing this alleged secret agreement to the public is for the sake of transparency, then why do they cry foul when we expose their activities in our EEZ?” Gonzales explained.

“No, we should already put an end to this. Instead, we should just diligently continue our duty to protect the interests of our country,” he added.

He said he believes President Marcos will be true to his oath to the Filipino people of faithfully preserving and defending the nation and the Constitution.

“And as the President said over and over again, he will do all in his power so that our proud nation will not lose an inch of its territory. This is evident through the President’s issuance of EO No. 57 creating the National Maritime Council to strengthen the Philippines’ maritime security and increase maritime domain awareness among Filipinos amid China’s aggressive tactics and threats in the WPS,” Gonzales expressed.

“I believe that, in the end, upholding our territorial integrity and sovereignty in accordance with our constitution and with international law is what matters the most. Defending the dignity of the Filipino nation is more important than pondering about an agreement that may or may not have happened.”