Poe, Santiago, Roxas, Duterte, Binay
stand firm vs China's territorial claims

With more than two weeks to go before the voters head to the polls for the country May 9 national elections, the presidential candidates have stood firm against China's alleged intrusion of Philippine waters but they agreed to seek diplomatic means in solving the country's maritime dispute with China.

Presidential bets -- Senator Grace Poe, Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago, and former Interior Secretary Manuel "Mar" Roxas II all noted that the international community supports the Philippines in its arbitration case against China.

The five contenders for the presidential race commented when one of the fishermen asked the candidates what assistance they could offer to fishermen like him amid the harassment they experience in the disputed waters during the third and last leg of the PiliPinas Debates 2016 held at the Uinversity of Pangasinan, Luzon late Sunday afternoon. 

Poe, the daughter of the late movie action hero Fernando Poe Jr., said that the country should strengthen its Coast Guard to protect the rights of Filipino fishermen.

"The West Philippine Sea is not a personal aquarium of the Chinese. It's ours and we should persuade our allies. If they are true friends, they should help us and we should not give that up," the frontrunner independent presidential bet added.

Asked by a fisherman how she plans to help them amid the harassment they experience in the disputed waters, the senator cited other countries that support their own fishermen.

Poe said that if she is elected President, she will ensure additional equipment and help for the Coast Guard, as well as for fishermen and their families. She compared Filipinos to schoolchildren being bullied.

"I will increase the number of Coast Guards and give handheld radios to fishermen so they can ask for help from the authorities," she vowed.

On the other hand, both Santiago (People's Reform Party) and Roxas (ruling administration's Liberal Party) agreed that diplomacy is the key but the former was also interested in going on the offensive.

"If they are in our waters and take our fish, I will call the coast guard I will bomb those, " she said in Tagalog, adding that, "We will talk with them then tell them we have world public opinion behind us. The world believes the water is ours. That's why, they should bully us."

Meanwhile, Roxas said that Filipinos should accept the fact that the Philippine government is no match to China when it comes to military assets.

But he said Filipinos should not give up on their claims in South China Sea. He said this is why the government went into arbitration.

Roxas assured the public that Filipinos can rely on the influence of the international community if the government wins the case against China.

However, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino offered to jet ski to a disputed area of West Philippine Sea and plant the nation’s flag on China’s reclaimed airport.

"I will personally go to one of the islands in the disputed sea and plant the Philippine flag to stake the country's claim. If they will kill be it's up to you to cry here in the Philippines," said the presidential candidate from southern Philippines.

He was quick to explain that he did not want to sacrifice the lives of soldiers. He furthered that he is willing to risk his life to assert the country's claim over the disputed waters but clarified that he is not willing to go into war.

"I will ask the Navy to bring me to the nearest boundary d'yan sa Spratlys, bababa ako, sasakay ako ng jet ski, dala-dala ko yun flag ng Pilipino at pupunta ako doon sa airport nila tapos itanim ko then I would say 'This is ours,'" Duterte said.

For Vice President Jejomar Binay, stalwart of the United Nationalist Alliance, also vowed that they will provide assistance to fishermen while the country's arbitration case against China is ongoing.

China claims almost all of the South China Sea or West Philippine Sea. Aside from the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan also have overlapping claims.

The Philippines has challenged China at the arbitration court in The Hague. Beijing, however, has not recognized the case filed by Manila. The international tribunal is expected to issue its ruling on the case by May.