Sen. Loren Legarda on Thursday said she had decided not to conduct any public hearing on alleged Chinese incursions in the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea) because the “sensitive issue” must be handled by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). The senator, chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, received several resolutions in 2018 from the minority bloc seeking an inquiry into the alleged Chinese militarization of the disputed sea. In June 2018, Legarda noted that her panel received Proposed Senate Resolution 722 and PSR 723 “on the China issue.”

Tamayo, B. E. (2019, May 31). ‘DFA should handle sea row’. The Manila Times, p. A2.