SINADYA ng tropang Tsino ang illegal na aksyon laban sa mga sundalong Pinoy sa Ayungin Shoal, ayon kay Pangulong Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
“It’s not armed, walang pumutok. Hindi tayo tinutukan ng baril but it was a deliberate action to stop our people. But in the process of that, kinuhanan tayo they boarded Philippine vessel and took the equipment from the Philippine vessel,” sabi ni Marcos Jr. sa panayam ng mga mamamahayag.
“Although there were no arms involved, nonetheless it was still a deliberate action and it is still essentially an illegal action that was taken by the Chinese forces,” giit ng Punong Ehekutibo.
Kailangan aniyang may mas gawin ang Pilipinas para iprotesta ang mga hakbang ng China sa West Philippine Sea (WPS).
“We have already made a similar number of demarche, so we have to do more than just that. Kasi papatawag natin ‘yung ambassador, sasabihin natin ito ‘yung position natin, hindi natin gusto ‘yung nangyari, and that’s it. But we have to do more than that, so we are doing just that,” sabi niya.
Napaulat na isang miyembro ng Philippine Navy ang naputulan ng daliri nang banggain ng Chinese ship ang isang bangka na nagsasagawa ng regular na rotation and resupply (RORE) mission para sa BRP Sierra Madre sa Ayungin Shoal.
Umani ng pagbatikos mula sa international community ang illegal action ng tropang Tsino.
Naging kontrobersyal din ang naging pahayag tungkol sa insidente ni Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin ito’y “misunderstanding or accident”.
Makaraan ang dalawang araw ay kinontra ni Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. ang sinabi ni Bersamin at tinawag ang pangyayarui bilang ”deliberate act of the Chinese officialdom to prevent us from completing our mission.” (ZIA LUNA)