Opposition Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV hit back yesterday at Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, saying the official has done nothing to follow through on the country’s victory in its arbitration case against China over the West Philippine Sea. Trillanes was reacting to Cayetano’s statement last week that it was under the watch of the Aquino administration that the country lost control over Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal to China with the senator acting as negotiator to Beijing. The senator defended his dealings with China as he was “officially designated as the backchannel negotiator” by then president Benigno Aquino III in May 2012 at the height of the so-called Panatag standoff, wherein about 80 to 100 Chinese vessels of various sizes were in and around the shoal.

Romero, P. (2018, August 6). Trillanes: Cayetano a snake, disregarding arbitral ruling. The Philippine Star, p. 5.