President Duterte has made clear his stand that the 2016 Philippine victory in the arbitral ruling against China cannot be undermined by any other government, Malacañang said yesterday. Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said the President, despite constant criticism, has asserted many times the July 2016 arbitral award, which the Chinese Foreign Ministry regarded as a mere “piece of paper” and whose fifth anniversary was marked by the Philippines last Monday. “We are not saddened by what the Chinese Foreign Ministry said about the arbitral award which, I quote, (was) ‘a piece of paper’,” he said.

Mendez, C., Lee-Brago, P., Felipe, C. S., & Villanueva, R. (2021, July 15). Palace : Rody has made stand on SCS ruling. The Philippine Star , p. 2.