China has been an absolute juggernaut in geopolitics but it appears it's no longer the juggernaut in basketball.
Gilas pulled through with an amazing 96-75 victory.
Cheered along from courtside by six senators, three of them wearing specially made "West Philippine Sea" t-shirts.
In an Instagram post, Senate Majority leader Joel Villanueva thanked Gilas for what he said was a "commanding, overwhelming and crystal clear victory against China."
Join our chief correspondent and anchor Pia Hontiveros on #PoliticsAsUsual — your weekly political appointment fix.
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Gilas pulled through with an amazing 96-75 victory.
Cheered along from courtside by six senators, three of them wearing specially made "West Philippine Sea" t-shirts.
In an Instagram post, Senate Majority leader Joel Villanueva thanked Gilas for what he said was a "commanding, overwhelming and crystal clear victory against China."
Join our chief correspondent and anchor Pia Hontiveros on #PoliticsAsUsual — your weekly political appointment fix.
Visit our website for more #NewsYouCanTrust: https://www.cnnphilippines.com/
Follow our social media pages:
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CNNPhilippines
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cnnphilippines/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/cnnphilippines
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NewsTranscript
00:00 China has been an absolute juggernaut in geopolitics.
00:06 If its postcard isn't water canoning, if there is such a word,
00:10 Philippine vessels attempting to deliver supplies to the BRP Sierra Madre
00:15 that's grounded on a Union Shoal early last month,
00:18 its central government is busy releasing new maps
00:22 that literally redefine the world as we know it,
00:25 like their so-called 10-dash line map,
00:27 an upgrade or a 2.0 version of their 9-dash line map.
00:33 But it appears it's no longer the juggernaut in basketball.
00:37 Last Saturday's FIBA game was our last chance to make that mark
00:41 after a dismal 0-4 record, and to make that mark at China's expense.
00:47 Gila's pulled through with an amazing 96-75 victory,
00:51 cheered along from courtside by six senators,
00:55 at least five of them wearing specially made West Philippine Sea T-shirts.
01:00 In an Instagram post, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva thanked Gila
01:04 for what he said was a "commanding, overwhelming, and crystal-clear victory against China."
01:12 [crowd cheering]
01:16 [crowd cheering]
01:20 [music]
01:43 Good evening, I'm Pia Ontiveros.
01:45 Welcome to your weekly political appointment, Fix Politics As Usual.
01:49 To talk about that game, those T-shirts, and the West Philippine Sea,
01:53 we're joined by Senator Bato De La Rosa via Zoom.
01:56 Good evening, Senator Bato. Thank you for coming on the show.
01:59 And thank you for wearing that T-shirt again.
02:02 Thank you, Pia. Good evening.
02:06 Good evening to all of our viewers.
02:10 Sir, who made the T-shirt?
02:12 And it's really for the game against China, is that right?
02:16 Yes, Senator Joel Villanueva, our Majority Leader,
02:22 made this T-shirt and gave it to us to wear.
02:27 And you really watch the games, not just China?
02:34 Always. Especially when there are games in the Philippines,
02:41 we're there to cheer them.
02:43 Okay. When you went to the game against China,
02:47 and you wore those T-shirts, what kind of a message,
02:51 were you trying to send a message to China and to their basketball team?
02:56 What were you trying to do there?
02:58 Well, the T-shirt was intended not for China,
03:05 but intended for our own GILAS Filipinas team
03:09 to motivate them.
03:13 Because we've been 4-0, 0-4.
03:16 So that was the last game and a very important one.
03:21 It was a very symbolic game.
03:23 And the win was a very symbolic victory for the Filipinos.
03:29 We wore the T-shirt to motivate our players to give it all.
03:36 To give their remaining strength and talents
03:41 because this was the last game against China.
03:45 It was a good thing. It was a victory.
03:48 We're thankful.
03:50 That's a very diplomatic way of saying it, Senator Batoy.
03:52 You said that was meant for GILAS, not against China.
03:57 But of course, the players saw that.
04:01 So China saw that, right?
04:05 Well, if they saw and noticed, well and good.
04:09 But the main purpose of wearing the T-shirt was to motivate our players
04:16 to awaken their patriotic fervor.
04:22 They saw that our countrymen in West Philippines are being bombed by water.
04:30 And here in court, we'll bomb them with points.
04:37 Look, if we bomb them with points, we'll have a huge advantage.
04:42 A huge advantage, 21 points.
04:44 Senator Aimee said it should be just 21 dash lines.
04:49 It's a good thing you won.
04:51 Going into that game, were you confident that GILAS would win?
04:55 And here, we're really talking about basketball now.
05:00 Were you confident that GILAS would win?
05:02 Or it didn't matter to you whether or not they won or lost?
05:05 We were there to support our team, win or loss.
05:10 Because I know that their game was enough for us to say that we won the game.
05:24 Because we saw their determination.
05:28 So regardless, whether we won or lost, we were there for our countrymen
05:31 to support them and to encourage them, to motivate them.
05:35 Win or lose.
05:36 It sounds like win or lose is the school we choose.
05:39 It's like we're just your sister.
05:40 Anyway, sir, some people would say that this is a form of politicizing sports,
05:49 politicizing the game, politicizing basketball.
05:52 What do you think of that?
05:54 No. It depends on you, on what you think of our t-shirt.
06:01 For us, our purpose is to encourage our players to give their all,
06:09 to give their best so we can secure the victory.
06:13 Politicize or not, anyway, it doesn't matter.
06:19 We are not violating any law or international agreement or whatever.
06:30 This is self-expression.
06:35 It is my constitutional right to express myself.
06:39 And of course, constitutional right of the other senators who were with you.
06:43 We mentioned Joel Villanueva, Senate President Mig Zubiri also there
06:46 wearing that West Philippine Sea t-shirt, Senator Bongo,
06:49 Senator Pia Cayetano, Senator Sunny Angara.
06:53 There are other pictures of them wearing jackets, so it's not visible,
06:56 but even Pia is wearing a West Philippine Sea t-shirt.
06:59 Anyway, we're going to go for a very quick break.
07:02 Senator Bato Adela Rosa will be right back here on Strict Politics As Usual.
07:07 [Music]
07:15 Welcome back. This is Politics As Usual.
07:18 Still with us, Senator Bato Adela Rosa.
07:20 He and five other senators wearing, as you can see, a West Philippine Sea t-shirt
07:27 to last Saturday's basketball--was it Saturday or Sunday?
07:32 The basketball--Sunday, sorry. Last Saturday's Sunday basketball game on FIBA against China.
07:39 Gilas, Philippines versus China. Of course, Gilas won that game by 21 points.
07:43 Senator Bato Adela Rosa, sir, there are people who say that if we can't beat them
07:48 in the West Philippine Sea or via water cannon or in diplomacy,
07:53 at least we beat them in basketball and that we still made a statement with that.
07:59 What do you think of that?
08:01 Yeah. That's right. I agree with that.
08:06 At least, at least, here in our home court, here in our territory, we beat them.
08:13 I said that that game was dedicated to our men and women who risked their lives
08:23 in the West Philippine Sea, especially our fishermen.
08:27 That game was dedicated to them.
08:32 What other ways, sir, or other avenues can we use to defend the West Philippine Sea
08:39 aside from diplomatic protests, notebooks, which apparently seem too numerous to matter in a sense?
08:48 What else can we do?
08:51 Our link up with our neighbors who also have claims in the West Philippine Sea.
09:01 We can help them to make our voices heard by China.
09:09 More people are complaining and more people are reprimanding them.
09:17 Maybe they will react more and notice.
09:21 If we are the only ones who are not verbal, we have made diplomatic protests to them,
09:29 thousands already, maybe hundreds or thousands of protests, nothing happened.
09:34 So maybe we can help our neighbors.
09:41 Other countries, even if they are far away from us, like Southeast Asia,
09:50 like Australia, America, other countries can help us so we can be heard.
09:58 Aside from making our voices heard, how else can we make our presence felt?
10:07 We have Pagasa Island, we have a few other outposts there where you can see Philippine troops or Philippine flags, for example.
10:18 But there are too few.
10:21 We are overpowered by China that has all the resources at its command.
10:28 What can we do? What can the Senate do?
10:31 We will support the needs of our troops in the West Philippine Sea.
10:45 What they need, even if our budget is small, it is a matter of prioritization.
10:52 If we prioritize their needs, maybe that would help the situation.
11:02 Especially our ship there needs to concretize its presence in the area because it will be destroyed.
11:12 If the ship needs to be concretized, we should support it and prioritize its budget.
11:25 When you say to prioritize the budget, now that there is a budget hearing,
11:30 it is a little bit too late for 2024 unless the support for the BFP, Sherrod Martin, and other ways by which we can assert Philippine presence is built in.
11:48 If it is not included in their national expenditure program, if it's not included, then maybe by a...
12:00 we can add it to the bike camp and insert it so that we can give funds.
12:08 So we have the power of the purse. We can change the budget.
12:15 So we can give that. That's our priority.
12:21 Senator Batong, there are many talks with other countries, allied countries, about joint maritime patrols.
12:27 For example, with the United States, with Japan, Australia, etc.
12:31 Do you see that as something that can be used to assert Philippine sovereignty?
12:41 And if you were to advise, I mean of course, I know you are the Philippine National Police, not the Navy,
12:49 but where would you want those joint patrols to happen? Where exactly in the West Philippine Sea?
12:54 Right there where we are threatened, where they are barricading us, where they are swarming us. Our presence should be there.
13:10 China should feel that our joint patrols are in that area.
13:16 So they should feel that we are not alone. We have allies from other countries who are patrolling in that area.
13:28 And if they are going to move those patrolling, that's a big issue.
13:34 That's a big issue because that would trigger an international uproar.
13:43 Senator Batong de la Rosa, we need to take just one last final gap or break before we end the show.
13:51 This is Politics As Usual. We'll be right back.
13:53 Welcome back to Politics As Usual.
14:06 We're speaking to Senator Batong de la Rosa about that last game last Sunday for the FIBA World Championships,
14:16 Guidas Filipinas versus China, 21-point victory over China.
14:21 One of the rare victories, Senator Batong, over China. Would you agree?
14:26 Yes, very rare and very symbolic. At least, we won. And China won. It was a great victory.
14:34 It erased all our sadness from the previous four games, the previous four defeats.
14:44 That one defeat, I'm okay with it. Even though we lost to the other four. At least, we won against China.
14:52 The Philippines is very happy.
14:55 Of course, we're not going to attempt to do a sports desk interview on the game. That's Andre Felix's...
15:04 Oh, the game is on Saturday. Okay. The sports desk is for Andre Felix.
15:08 So, we're not going to do a sports interview tonight. But anyway, Senator Batong de la Rosa, final words from you.
15:16 Well, Pia, I will repeat what I said about wearing this T-shirt. We have no other intentions.
15:30 We just want to motivate our team to play as they want.
15:37 We also want to show our solidarity to every Filipino. We hope that our sovereignty and sovereign rights will not be taken by foreigners.
15:53 That's why we say that we are in the Senate. We are not American, we are not Chinese, but we are Filipino.
16:03 We are there because of the national interest of the Philippines. That's all, Pia.
16:11 We have no other intentions. That's all.
16:16 I hope we have good vibes. We won. I hope we don't get bashed. We won.
16:24 It's a pity. When we lose, we get bashed. Now that we won, we'll get bashed again.
16:31 We're happy for the Philippine flag, for the country.
16:38 For the country.
16:40 The country of our base is not different. Our country is not different. Our country is the only one in the Philippines.
16:47 We should be united. If you don't want to be united, we have nothing to do there.
16:53 We love our country. We love our country.
16:57 All right. Thank you very much, Senator Batong de la Rosa. Thank you, sir, for joining us.
17:02 Thank you very much, Pia. Thank you very much and good evening.
17:05 Thank you, sir, and good evening to you. That sweet 21-point victory over China brought out the quintessential Pinoy humor from a former senator and an incumbent senator.
17:15 I'm Imarcos Kuiping. Perhaps Manila should release a 21-line map.
17:20 And former Senator Kiko Pangilinan on X, formerly Twitter, with a post, or replying to a post by @historicvids.
17:31 The question was, "Without Googling, name something China invented."
17:35 Kiko Pangilinan's deadpan reply, 10-line.
17:40 We've been told before, don't talk politics at the dinner table or the family reunion or in vibrant groups and risk warfare, digital or otherwise.
17:49 But we can talk about it here at this table on this show.
17:53 The weekly political appointment fix, politics as usual.
17:56 I'm Pia Ontiveros. See you back here next Wednesday, 8 p.m.
18:00 [Music]