MANILA, Philippines — More senators are calling on Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan to go back to Beijing after the Chinese embassy dared Filipino lawmakers to declare its envoy persona non grata amid a diplomatic row over his remarks about using force against the Philippines.
Sen. JV Ejercito posted a video on his official Facebook page telling Quan, in the diplomat’s mother tongue, that he is not welcome in the country.
“Ambassador Jing Quan, [the] West Philippine Sea is ours! Go home!” Ejercito said in Mandarin.
On Friday, he wrote on Facebook in Chinese: “Jing Quan, go home!!!”
Sen. Francis Pangilinan also urged the diplomat to just return to China after his threat to use force against the Philippines.
“By way of diplomatic language, you can please easily leave Manila and go back to China,” the senator posted on his official Facebook page.
“We do not need foreign guests in the form of arrogant, condescending diplomats,” he added.
The new word war between Jing and Filipino lawmakers came after Jing on Thursday said China could easily defeat the Philippines if it chose to use force but insisted that Beijing preferred peace.
“If we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not choose force and we love peace,” Jing told reporters when asked about Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr.’s description of China as a troublemaker in the region.
READ: Solon wants Chinese envoy expelled after embassy’s ‘stop bluffing’ dare
On Friday, Sen. Risa Hontiveros urged the government to demand a formal retraction and apology from Beijing, saying Jing should be declared persona non grata if none was forthcoming.
She described the ambassador’s remarks as “gray zone aggression in diplomatic form,” saying they were intended to intimidate and coerce the Philippines.
Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian likewise called on Jing to apologize, describing his remarks as undiplomatic and uncalled for.
Sen. Erwin Tulfo, vice chairperson of the Senate committee on foreign relations, also said the Philippines would not back down in the face of threats.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said on Friday that Jing’s remarks sounded like a threat and warranted a discussion with the Chinese envoy. /gsg
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