During the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, retired Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio and ex-Secretary of Foreign Affairs Albert del Rosario were very vocal in their criticism of the way President Duterte was handling the maritime dispute between Manila and Beijing concerning the West Philippine Sea. In July 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, an international tribunal based in The Netherlands, upheld the rights of the Philippines over vast areas of the West Philippine Sea against China’s contrary assertion.

Carpio's, Del Rosario's suspicious silence on Sabah. (2022, July 24). Daily Tribune, p. A5.