We must be a maritime powerhouse

By Michael Henry Yusingco, LL.M

We should not be intimidated by the sight of the Chinese Coast Guard Monster Ship or their Navy’s Shandong Carrier sailing in our seas. But we must also accept that we cannot beat these ocean goliaths with just smarts and unshakeable faith. Indeed, their very presence should ignite a burning fire in our bellies to have monster ships of our own.

As a maritime nation we need to zealously safeguard our vast marine wealth. Remember that we are the “Pearl of the Orient Seas”. Hence, it only makes sense to have a strong maritime defense force. And we need to repel invaders not just in the West Philippine Sea. We must diligently protect the entire archipelago.

Recall that at the height of the biggest Balikatan exercises last April, a Chinese research vessel was spotted near Viga, Catanduanes. According to the Navy, it might be conducting maritime research in the area. Our coast guard could not immediately send a ship to intercept the interloper as most of their vessels were participating in the drills.

Just think about it this way. We rank as the 6th nation with the longest coastline. Let us compare this with France which is 10th.  In the Global Naval Powers Ranking (2024), the French Navy ranks 8th out of 39. We are on the 30th spot. In fact, every key stakeholder-nation in the Indo-Pacific region has a strong navy except the Philippines.

In his third State of the Nation Address, President Bongbong Marcos proclaimed:

“The Philippines cannot yield. The Philippines cannot waver.

We are now more conscious as a people, and strategic in heightening our aerial and maritime domain awareness. We are continuing to strengthen our defensive posture, both through developing self-reliance and through partnerships with like-minded states.”

Note that this was a directive addressed to a joint session of Congress. Our lawmakers should respond to this call to action by enacting two laws in particular that are vital to the goal of establishing a robust and respectable maritime defense posture. A Self-Reliant Defense Posture (SRDP) law and the Freedom of Information (FOI) statute.

The enactment of the SRDP law is an integral component of our quest to build a mighty naval armada. This statute will make certain the purchase of weapons, war equipment and materiel, and other security needs will be done in a professional manner. That decisions will be made based on national defense requirements and nothing else.

More importantly, the envisioned legislation aims to establish a defense industry which shall be the foundation for building a potent national defense force. For this gargantuan effort is not just about buying weaponry and the like. The SRDP law ensures the boosting of our defense capabilities will also be a boost to our economy in the long term.

Pertinently, the institutionalization of a self-reliant defense posture policy involves the annual utilization of a huge chunk of the national budget for defense. Unfortunately, the long list of government corruption scandals just naturally engenders fear that the funds dedicated for national security will be compromised.

Just a few years ago corruption in the military was so rife that the late Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago sarcastically rebranded the AFP as “predators of the people and the State” in a privilege speech. Sadly, it has hounded the AFP ever since. President Marcos must heed the call of the Makati Business Club to hasten the passage of the FOI bill.

An FOI law can protect the AFP Modernization program from graft and corruption. But it can also ensure the operational and logistical decisions on how this money will be spent are geared towards improving the AFP’s capability to defend an archipelagic state like the Philippines and to protect a potentially high yielding maritime economy.

Presently, Maritime Cooperation Activities with like-minded states is still absolutely critical for us. But we simply cannot celebrate this as the pinnacle of our national security strategy. This kind of thinking only blinds us to the long-term goal of becoming a maritime powerhouse. And by the way, the hard work towards a self-reliant defense posture must start now.