Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano on Thursday filed supplementary charges to an impeachment complaint against President Duterte, accusing him of taking a “defeatist stance” by doing nothing to challenge China’s activities on Benham Rise and the West Philippine Sea. Alejano alleged that Mr. Duterte betrayed the public trust and violated the 1987 Constitution by by refusing to challenge China’s incursions into Philippine territory, including Benham Rise, an underwater landmass off the eastern coast of Luzon that the United Nations declared in 2012 part of the Philippine’s continental shelf. The former Marine accused Mr. Duterte of “inaction” and dereliction of his duty to assert the country’s sovereign and maritime rights and territorial claims to Panatag Shoal and islands in the West Philippine Sea-waters within the Philippine’s 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone(EEZ) in the South China Sea-and Benham Rise.

Yap, D., Salaverria, L. B., & Gonzales, Y. V. (2017, March 31). Du30 assailed for ‘defeatist’ stand vs China. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. A2.