House Speaker Pantaleon “Bebot” Alvarez on Monday said it’s about time the country would not rely on foreign aid from the country’s closest allies.
Alvarez made this statement in a press conference when sought for his reaction to two US senators’ position to consider imposing conditions on foreign aid to the Philippines in light of the vigilante killings of suspected criminals at the height of the Duterte administration’s war on drugs.
The Davao Del Norte representative said it’s time the Philippine government uphold the country’s sovereignty despite the inflow of foreign aid.“‘Yung aid aid na yan, ano yan, nasa kanila yun kung ibibigay nila yun or hindi. Wala tayong pakialam dun. Huwag nila tayong bigyan ng kung anu-anong kondisyon (The aid is up to them to give or not. It’s none of our business. They should not impose conditions),” Alvarez said.
“Siguro, kailangang mag-appreciate din natin yung sovereignty natin. It’s high time huwag tayo umasa sa mga foreign aid na yan (Perhaps we must appreciate our sovereignty. It’s high time we stop relying on foreign aid),” Alvarez added.
Alvarez said the country could live on its own provided it uses its resources according to its need.
“Kung ibaba natin ang pangangailangan natin, wala tayong problema diyan (If we would lessen our needs, there would be no problem),” Alvarez said.
Duterte, a close friend of Alvarez, vowed to take on an independent foreign policy as he criticized longtime ally US for opposing his administration’s war on drugs, while he considered strengthening ties with China and Russia, two giant economies challenging the US in the global arena.
In a colloquy with fellow Senator Benjamin Cardin titled “Recent Developments in the Philippines and Indonesia,” which was entered in the congressional records on Sept. 26, Senator Patrick Leahy cited the law he authored that the US should not give aid to countries with a dismal record of human rights.
Since President Rodrigo Duterte waged his war on drugs, at least 3,000 suspected drug criminals have been killed, mostly vigilante murders of suspected pushers whose bodies were dumped on the streets of the metropolitan with their faces covered in tape beside a poster declaring “Huwag tularan (Don’t emulate).”
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