Any government official unwilling to back the Philippines’ claim over the West Philippine Sea (WPS) faces a straightforward choice, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has said: either take the policy to court or walk away from public service.
That framing came in an August 2 clarification, after remarks he made at a Manila news forum days earlier stirred varied reactions. Teodoro pushed back on how his comments had been read, insisting the resignation call rested on legal obligation rather than a person’s private views. “One cannot ask a public official to resign just because of a belief. There must be a violation of a law or a regulation,” he said.
Central to his reasoning is Administrative Order No. 29, issued in 2012 under then President Benigno Aquino III, which formally adopted “West Philippine Sea” as the name for the waters off the country’s western coast. Because that order was issued under the authority of law, Teodoro argued, it carries the weight of law and binds those who serve in government. “I was careful in using as basis A.O. 29 series of 2012, concerning the West Philippine Sea. Since the A.O. was issued in pursuance of and under law, it forms part of the law of the land,” he said.
Officials who reject the policy, in his view, are not without recourse — they can ask the Supreme Court to strike it down as unconstitutional. What they cannot do, he maintained, is quietly disregard it while holding office. “Uphold or file an action to declare the rule or law unconstitutional. Until that time there is no option but to uphold the law. If a public official cannot conform to these requisites, then the only option is to resign,” he said.
The defense chief tied the dispute to a concrete, recent move by the government: the country’s submission to the United Nations, coursed through President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and the foreign affairs department, seeking recognition of an extended continental shelf. That claim reaches the waters around Bajo de Masinloc, which fall under the same 2012 order. Officials reluctant to endorse the filing, Teodoro suggested, should say so plainly and let the record reflect it. “Are they not supporting this? If not, then what is their sworn duty?” he asked.
He also charged that inaccurate coverage had fueled the uproar, cautioning against reading only headlines and warning that “fake news once again has reared its ugly head.”
Manila’s position sits atop the 2016 arbitral ruling that dismissed Beijing’s expansive claims across the South China Sea — a decision China has never accepted. Teodoro, sanctioned by Beijing earlier this year over his blunt criticism, cast the stakes in generational terms, saying officials who oppose the government’s stance would be judged by those who come after, and by the fishermen of Masinloc, Zambales, who bear the brunt of Chinese activity in the contested waters.
