Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana is mulling increased naval patrols at Recto (Reed) Bank in the West Philippine Sea after the “collision” of a Chinese vessel and a Philippine fishing boat. Lorenzana admitted that the regular patrols being conducted by the Philippine Navy (PN) at the vicinity of Recto Bank to ensure the safe passage of local fishing boats are not enough. “Mayroon tayong patrol pero kulang lang tayo ng barko talaga. We don’t have enough Coast Guard ships. Kaya we are planning to acquire more para may pangguwardiya tayo dyan (We have patrol operations there but we lack patrol ships. We don’t have enough Coast Guard ships. That’s why we are planning to acquire more so that we can guard the area),” he said.

Sadongdong, M. A., & Terrazola, V. P. (2019, June 15). More naval patrols at Recto Bank eyed. Manila Bulletin, pp. 1, 7.