Shock! Senator Zubiri Now Believes It's Not Ok For China to Spy on the Philippine Military

In 2019 the Armed Forces of the Philippines entered a deal with a Chines-owned telcommunications firm Mislatel to install cell towers on their bases. The AFP was warned that his was a risky move which would compromise the security of the nation. Of course those in charge did not listen and the plan went through. Now Senator Zubiri wants those towers dismantled. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1207635

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri is planning to ask Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. to remove cell towers built by Chinese companies within Philippine military bases.

In an interview over Radyo 630 on Friday, Zubiri pointed out that the cell towers may have an impact on the national security.

"You know there are [telecommunication company] telco towers by state-owned company of China that is located inside our military compound, in a military base, this happened during the last administration," Zubiri said.

"That's why I will meet Gen. Brawner, our AFP Chief of Staff to ask him to remove that because it might have CCTV where they can see if troops are coming out of the camp, we're doomed, right?" he added.

The AFP and the Mindanao Islamic Telephone Company (Mislatel) signed on September 2019 a memorandum of agreement allowing the new telco player to build its communications facilities in military camps and installations.

In the agreement, Mislatel “guarantees that the devices, equipment, and/or structures installed at the site provided by the AFP shall not be used to obtain classified information” as a measure to prevent electronic espionage.

The AFP will determine specific locations with its rental value for use of Mislatel in the installation and management of its communications sites without undermining the operations of affected military units.

Mislatel is also required to “furnish all equipment, labor, and materials necessary to effect the co-location of its facilities and shoulders all expenses in connection with or incidental to the co-location” and payment of all taxes, permits, licenses, and other charges.

The Mislatel consortium, which adopted the name Dito Telecommunity, is composed of Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Udenna Corp, and China Telecom.

China might have CCTV installed in these towers and pose a threat to the nation? What a turn from Zubiri who defended this deal back in 2019. He even said "it would be unfair to imply that China Telecom’s presence in Mislatel would be a national security concern."

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1053358

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri on Thursday downplayed concerns of potential security risks over the presence of a Chinese state-owned company in the consortium selected as the provisional new major telecommunications player in the country.

Appearing at the regular Kapihan sa Senado media forum, Zubiri said he sees no national security issues with China Telecom in play in the country’s telecommunications sector, citing the presence of other state-owned Chinese companies in other major sectors.

“National security concern, probably not because the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) is 40 percent owned by a state-owned Chinese company. They are doing their part in helping develop our energy sector,” he said.

The NGCP is majority-controlled by Henry Sy Jr. ,along with Robert Coyiuto Jr. of Prudential Guarantee and Assurance, with the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) as technical partner. It holds a 25-year concession to operate and manage the country's power transmission facilities.

The Mislatel consortium -- composed of Dennis Uy's Davao-based Udenna Corporation and its logistics arm, Chelsea Logistics Holdings, together with state-owned China Telecommunications, and the Mindanao Islamic Telephone Corporation, Inc. (Mislatel) -- was selected Wednesday as the country's provisional third major telco that would go against PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom.

Zubiri said it would be unfair to imply that China Telecom’s presence in Mislatel would be a national security concern.

“I believe China Telecom is a publicly listed firm in mainland China. The books are open, they are transparent,” Zubiri said.

He stressed that what is important is that Mislatel lives up to its promises of better services, lower rates and faster Internet connectivity.

And now he wants to pull down these towers over security concerns? 

If Zubiri was a patriot and not a Duterte lapdog, Dennis Uy who backs Mislatel is a good friend of Duterte's, then Zubiri would have been against this deal from the beginning. It's not as if everyone wasn't warned. 

https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/in-depth/244539-experts-warn-spying-risk-military-contract-china-backed-telco/

The Philippine military is opening up its bases and camps to Chinese government presence by way of a telecommunication company’s cell sites – and it says that’s all right, despite warnings that it would leave itself vulnerable to spying.

On September 11, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) signed a memorandum of agreement with the Mindanao Islamic Telephone Company (Mislatel), allowing the company to “build facilities in military camps and installations,” on communication towers within AFP properties.

Mislatel, which has rebranded as “Dito Telecommunity (Dito),” is a consortium of Filipino businessman Dennis Uy’s holdings firm Udenna Corporation with a 35% stake, his listed company Chelsea Logistics with 25%, and the Chinese government-owned and -controlled China Telecom with 40%.

Why should this matter? This means the Chinese government, through China Telecom, has a 40% equity in Mislatel/Dito.

More than just a shareholder, China Telecom will be in charge of building Dito’s nationwide telecommunication infrastructure, as Uy admitted his companies have no such expertise or experience.

China Telecom, by its country’s law, is mandated to spy for its government. Chapter 1, Article 7 of China’s National Intelligence Law states, “Any organization or citizen shall support, assist, and cooperate with the state intelligence work in accordance with the law…”

Under President Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippines has moved closer to China. Duterte has downplayed his country’s international law-backed claim to sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea in exchange for loans and pledges of financial cooperation. 

He agreed to joint exploration of the West Philippine Sea’s oil and gas reserves. He’s kept mum about China’s encroachment on Philippine waters, its abuses – even aggression – against Filipinos, especially fishermen. He has also allowed the entry of Chinese nationals working in the offshore gaming industry and Chinese-financed construction projects.

All this while Chinese coast guard and naval ships criss-cross and even patrol the West Philippine Sea nearly unchallenged. Besides a perfunctory, unimplementable order to drive these vessels out, Duterte has largely tolerated this, too.

Given this context, shouldn’t the deal with a China-backed telco raise concerns within the military itself? No, the AFP said, because they have “safeguards in place” and the telco’s equipment would be “separate” from the military’s. Exactly how they would see to this, the AFP’s top brass would not elaborate.

China Telecom is legally mandated to spy for China. That is not a secret. It is well known. And yet Zubiri, because he did not want to upset Duterte, said it was no big deal. The man is either ignorant or he willingly ignored that part about China Telecom being required to spy for China. Whatever the case Zubiri has shown his incompetence in this matter and his unfitness for office by supporting Mislatel.  

What changed his mind all of a sudden? China's increasing aggression in the WPS culminating recently in the blasting of a water canon at a ship sent to supply the Sierra Madre at Ayungin Shoal. That's the reason he gave for recommending China be shunned in all public infrastructure projects.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1207634

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri has urged the government not to award big-ticket infrastructure projects funded with Filipino taxpayers’ money to Chinese contractors and state-owned companies as their income would only be used to fund China’s bullying tactics in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

“Why would we use Filipino taxpayers’ money to pay these state-owned companies? Then their income would go to China which uses them to pay their Navy and Coast Guard to harass us here. That is not right,” Zubiri said in a radio interview on Thursday night.

He said infrastructure projects should be given instead to “friendly” countries like Japan and Korea which have been providing development aid to the Philippines under the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), respectively.

“We might as well give these projects to our neighbors who love us, to our friends who are helping us. South Korea and Japan are providing us with big foreign development aid” Zubiri said.

He also called on the Philippine government to build strong trade partnerships with other countries in view of his earlier suggestion to boycott Chinese products and companies in the Philippines as a sign of protest against China’s continued harassment in Philippine waters.

He pointed out that like Vietnam, the Philippines can execute trade agreements with other countries or enhance existing ones to compensate for Chinese products coming into the country.

He also urged Filipinos “to patronize locally produced agricultural products” - like onions and garlic from Ilocos Norte and other provinces, and vegetables from Cordillera, Bukidnon and the Visayas.

Zubiri however admitted that China has become our number one trade partner, but nevertheless remains optimistic that this can be overcome with the establishment of partnership with other neighboring countries and our entry to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement.

According to available data, the value of Philippine exports to China stands at USD15.1 billion or PHP830.5 billion, comprising 16 percent of the country’s total exports.

The value of imports, meanwhile, is pegged at USD48.9 billion or PHP2.7 trillion, or 33.8 percent of the total imports. This means that the Philippines has a trade imbalance of USD33.8 billion in favor of China.

The Senate President has been very vocal in condemning China’s continued intrusion into Philippine territory, particularly the recent incident where Chinese Coast Guard vessels trailed, blocked and then trained water cannons at the Philippine Coast Guard on a supply run to BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal.

It's a welcome change but that has come too late. Where was Zubiri during Duterte's presidency when he practically gave the country away to China? Where was Zubiri when Duterte called The Hague ruling a "piece of paper?" At this point it's too little too late. We heard all through the Duterte presidency that the Philippines cannot afford to go to war which was to miss the point entirely. The point is that the Philippines should be disengaging from China rather than treating them as a friend. If that had happened back in 2016 we might be in a different place but it did not and we are not. Zubiri's change of heart is too little too late.