Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 8) – President Rodrigo Duterte chided Senator Manny Pacquiao for criticizing his stance on the West Philippine Sea issue.
“It’s about foreign policy. I would not want to degrade him, but next time he should…mag-aral ka muna nang husto [study diligently], Duterte said in an interview with his friend Pastor Apollo Quiboloy on Tuesday.
“Apparently, this guy has a very shallow knowledge,” the President added.
Pacquiao – president of the ruling PDP-Laban party – earlier criticized Duterte’s stance on the maritime dispute with China as lacking. Pacquiao said Duterte should be giving strong responses now, just as he did during the 2016 presidential campaign, when he said he would ride a jet ski and plant the Philippine flag in the West Philippine Sea to assert the country’s sovereign rights.
RELATED: Senate likely to pass West PH Sea resolution with amendments
Duterte has been criticized for his friendly ties with China, which has repeatedly rejected the 2016 arbitral ruling the favored Manila over Beijing’s claims in the disputed waters.
“Itong mga taong ito, hindi ako kilala [These people do not know me]… Foreign policy is just being neutral. But ako [I am] neutral in a sense I do not favor one country for the other nor would I allow any of those countries to be in the Philippines to establish itong mga [these] military bases,” he countered.
The President earlier said the country owes a debt of gratitude to China. However, he stressed he cannot compromise on some matters, especially those concerning the West Philippine Sea.
