President Duterte and his officials should “cast aside their fear of displeasing China” and listen to Filipinos and not to the Chinese ambassador, former foreign affairs chief Albert del Rosario said on Tuesday. “We need to listen, not to the Chinese ambassador, but to our people. We need to embrace, not China, but our own country,” Del Rosario said in remarks at the launch of the book “Rock Solid” authored by Marites Dañguilan Vitug. With a UN-backed international tribunal ruling in favor of the country’s legal case against China’s maritime claims, Del Rosario said the Duterte administration should now be able to assert the Philippines’ entitlements under international law without fear of undue retaliation from the Asian giant. .

Lee-Brago, P., & Katigbak, J. (2018, July 26). 'Duterte should listen to Pinoys, not to Chinese envoy'. The Philippine Star, p. 6.