Special Assistant to the President Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go and the youngest son of President Rodrigo Duterte, Sebastian “Baste” Duterte rode their jet ski as they took a tour around the Casiguran Sound during the Philippine Rise commemoration on May 15, 2018.
Duterte on Tuesday asserted the Philippines’ sovereignty over the Philippine Rise.
Duterte said he does not distinguish between sovereign rights and sovereign territory because the underwater feature falls within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
“I no longer talk about sovereign [territory] or sovereign rights. I do not make any distinction. Basta umabot ‘yan ng [Exclusive] Economic Zone namin, amin ‘yan,” he said in a program commemorating the first anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 25, which renamed Benham Rise to Philippine Rise.
