DFA

the members and the resource persons present today.

Good afternoon, Your Honor.

May we acknowledge the presence of the following members,

Vice Chair Sancho Ando Oaminal

and Vice Chair Niko Raul Daza,

Deputy Minority Leader Percival Perci Cendaña,

Representative Leody Odie Tarriela,

Representative Dadah Kiram Ismula,

Representative Renee Louise Co,

Representative Brian Poe.

And for the resource persons from the Department of Foreign Affairs,

from the Office of the Secretary,

Your Honorable Secretary,

Secretary Maria Teresa Lazaro,

Chief Coordinator Maria Antonina M. Mendoza Oblena,

from the Office of Policy Planning and Coordination, OPPC,

ASEC Robespierre L. Bolivar,

from the Office of Treaties and Legal Affairs, OTLA,

Deputy Assistant Secretary and Executive Director,

Anthony Achilles L. Mandap,

Present.

Yes, sir, thank you.

From the Internal Audit Service,

Assistant Secretary Robert Operer Jr.

Thank you, sir.

From the Office of Public Diplomacy,

Acting AAC and Spokesperson Analing D. Ratonel,

from the Office of USeC for Administration,

Under-secretary Maria Teresa B. Dizon de Vega,

Present.

Ma'am, sorry.

From the Human Resources Management Office, Assistant Secretary Marford Angeles.

Thank you, sir.

From the Office of Asset Management and Support Services, Assistant Secretary Charmaine Cernachua.

Thank you, ma'am.

From the Office of Protocol, Assistant Secretary Ariel Peñaranda.

Thank you, sir.

From the Office of Financial Management Services, Assistant Secretary Emilio Fernandez.

Thank you, sir.

From the Office of Consular Affairs, OCA, Assistant Secretary Anne Hlando-On-Lui.

Thank you, ma'am.

Office of USEC for Policy, Undersecretary Leo Jerela Lim.

Thank you, sir.

Office of Middle East and African Affairs, Assistant Secretary Herminia Aguilar-Usudan.

Thank you, ma'am.

United Nations and International Organizations, Assistant Secretary Laila Lora-Santos.

Thank you, ma'am.

Office of Asian and Pacific Affairs, Assistant Secretary Marcial Louie Alperes.

Thank you, sir.

Office of American Affairs, Assistant Secretary Renita Rodriguez.

Thank you, ma'am.

Office of European Affairs, Assistant Secretary Dina Joy Amato.

Thank you, ma'am.

Office of ASEAN Affairs, Assistant Secretary Anna Maria Hernando.

Thank you, ma'am.

Maritime and Ocean Affairs Office, Deputy Assistant Secretary and Spokesperson for Maritime Affairs, Rogelio Villanueva, Jr.

Thank you, sir.

Office of USEC for Economic and Cultural Diplomacy, Undersecretary Maria Adrelita Austria.

Thank you, ma'am.

Office of Economic and Cultural Diplomacy, Deputy Assistant Secretary and Executive Director Arlene Magno.

Thank you, ma'am.

Office of the USEC, Undersecretary for Migration Affairs, Ecedin H. Tagua.

Thank you, sir.

Office of Migration Affairs, Assistant Secretary Angelica Escalona.

Thank you, ma'am.

Foreign Service Institute, Director General Neil Frank-Perrer.

Thank you, sir.

Presidential Commission on Visiting Forces, Undersecretary Antonio Jaulana.

Thank you, sir.

UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines, SecGen Ivan Anthony Henares.

Thank you, sir.

Beads and Awards Committee, Chairperson Paulo Saret.

Thank you, sir.

And lastly, Office of Intelligence and Security Services, Assistant Secretary Elmer G. Cato.

And there are more additional resource persons.

Members of the House, Representative Milagros Aquino Magsaysay.

Thank you, ma'am.

That's all, Chair.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

Before we proceed with the presentation, I would like to recognize my co-sponsor, Congressman

Nico Raul Daza, for his brief manifestation of support.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Chair, distinguished colleagues, good afternoon.

Allow this representation to first acknowledge the presence of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs,

the Honorable Maria Teresa Lazaro, a career diplomat of over four decades, whose steady

hand has served this Republic from the halls of ASEAN to the capitals of Europe, and now

at the helm of our entire Foreign Service.

With her are the Undersecretaries and Assistant Secretaries of the Department, the leadership

of the Foreign Service Institute, the UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines, and

the Presidential Commission on Visiting Forces, and the men and women of our Foreign Service,

many of whom serve quietly, far from home, so that no Filipino abroad ever has to stand

alone.

We welcome you all to the House of the People.

Mr. Chair, it is the distinct honor of this representation to co-sponsor the proposed

fiscal year 2027 budget of the Department of Foreign Affairs and its attached agencies

in the amount of 35 billion pesos.

Diplomacy is our first line of defense, long before any show of force is ever contemplated.

It is the diplomat who stands for the flag.

At the negotiating table, in the consular window, at the side of a distressed kababayan

seeking help in foreign soil.

When we fund the DFA, we fund the peaceful assertion of who we are as a nation, the protection

of our national interests, the promotion of the welfare and dignity of every Filipino

overseas, the pursuit of economic opportunity through our partnerships abroad, and the projection

of the best that the Filipino has to offer to the world.

These are the pillars of our nation's foreign policy.

This budget is their foundation.

On that score, the department has earned this chamber's confidence.

The 2025 annual performance review shows every indicator met or exceeded.

On the consular side, the part our constituents feel.

Ninety-nine percent of cases involving overseas Filipinos were acted upon with the prescribed

period.

All other consular documents were issued on time, and another 99 percent of passports

were released within the prescribed period.

These are not abstractions.

behind each percentage point is a filipino whose government answered when it mattered

mr chair kindly indulged this representation a brief personal note under the leadership of

secretary lazaro and through the department's openness to work with this representation

the establishment of the 43rd consular office in catarman northern samar

was granted and funded. Bilang Catarmananon, nagpapasalamat ako.

Ilalapit na po natin ang mga serbisyo ng DFA para sa lahat ng Nortehanon. Dakong salamat, Madam Secretary. This is a department that listens. This representation is confident that the department

will continue to bring its services closer to every filipino whether at home or abroad

mr chair the mandate of the department is to promote and protect philippine interests in

the global community at a time of shifting geopolitics with our sovereignty tested in

the west philippine sea and with millions of filipinos living and working abroad that

mandate is not a slogan on a wall it is a promise that wherever it

may be in the world, their government stands with them. Saan man sila sa mundo, hindi sila nag-iisa.

for these reasons these representations this representation respectfully asks this august

chamber to support the proposed 2027 budget of the department of foreign affairs and its attached

agencies not merely as an appropriation but as an investment in our sovereignty in our standing

among nature among nations and in every filipino who carries our flag beyond our shore thank you mr

chair

thank you congressman nico and to the department of foreign affairs family i also have

a letter a manifestation of support from the very good representative from

second district of Pangasinan, the Honorable Mark Cojuangco, and I would like to read a

part of this letter addressed to the honorable maria teresa p lazaro

secretary department of foreign affairs dear secretary lazaro i have the honor to

convey my highest compliments and extend my profound appreciation to the department of

foreign affairs for the invaluable assistance rendered to my office and the house delegation

during our recent official nuclear energy missions in the united states and canada

under your distinguished stewardship the foreign service continues to uphold the highest standing

standards of public administration and international representation the support provided to our

delegation ensured not only the efficient execution of our official schedule but also the

total realization of our legislative objectives please accept honorable secretary the assurances

of my highest consideration and esteem. Sincerely, Mark Cojuangco. So, once again, good afternoon to

uh secretary maria teresa lazaro to our distinguished undersecretaries assistant

secretaries members of the department of foreign affairs family and our dear colleagues in congress

at this point we are now ready to hear your present presentation so secretary you may now proceed

thank you

thank you very much

thank you very much mr chair thank you very much uh your honor also for the um for the endorsement

that has been given. The same goes also for Congressman Cojuangco for, um, the letter that you

have um mr chair that you have uh read and um just for my opening remarks again um good afternoon

also to the honorable members of the committee in appropriations on behalf of the department

of foreign affairs allow me to thank the committee for this opportunity to present and

discuss the department's proposed budget for fiscal year 2027 today's briefing is an opportunity

to provide you with an overview of dfa and his attached agencies key accomplishments priorities

and proposed fiscal year 2027 budget the work of the department continues to be anchored on

the three pillars of our philippine foreign policy one preservation enhancement of national security to

promotion and attainment of economic security and three protection of the rights and promotion of

the welfare and interests of filipinos overseas these pillars guide our diplomatic engagements

our work in advancing the country's economic interests and our delivery of consular services

and assistance to national services to overseas filipinos around the world for fiscal year 27

the department is seeking a total budget of approximately 35 billion 173

million which will enable which will enable us to sustain our core operations and respond to

the philippines growing requirements in national security economic diplomacy consular services

assistance to nationals and organization development we hope that today's briefing

will provide the committee with a clear picture for the department's work and the

resources required to carry our mandate effectively the key officials of the department

and our attached agencies are all present to respond to the questions of the committee

we are grateful for the continued support of the house of representatives

for the department its programs and we look forward to a constructive discussion on our

proposed budget thank you very much my colleagues will make a brief presentation for just for the

information of the committee members thank you

good afternoon honorable members of

the house uh my name is Robespierre Bolivar i'm the assistant secretary for policy planning

and uh i have been asked by the secretary to present the budgetary thrusts of the department

of foreign affairs for fiscal year 2027 i believe we have some slides uh to show you

next slide please as the secretary mentioned in her opening remarks

uh department of foreign affairs pursues the three pillars of foreign policy the enhancement

of our national security the promotion of our economic security and the protection of the rights

welfare of our nationals through assistance to nationals programs and the delivery of world-class

consular services undergirding the three pillars are our efforts to ensure effective public and

cultural diplomacy to create an environment which is friendly to the pursuit of philippine interests

overseas and organizational development or the strengthening of the dfa as an institution

next slide please for fiscal year 2026 our key milestone is the philippine chairship of asean

under the theme navigating our future together over the course of the year we hope and expect to

host over 641 meetings both at leaders level ministerial senior officials and technical working

levels. We have 26 heads of state level meetings. Our

chairship also coincides with the following milestones. The

first year of the implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision

2045, commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of

Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia. And our ASEAN

leaders also issued their statement in response to the

Middle East crisis during their summit in earlier this year in

Cebu, and also issued a declaration on maritime

cooperation, which is, as the honourable members would know,

is very close to the heart of the Philippines. Next slide,

please. In terms of ASEAN maritime cooperation, this

leaders declaration issued in Cebu in May 2026, discussed

regional cooperation maritime issues anchored on the UN

Convention on the Law of the Sea and most importantly, the

leaders endorsed the proposal to create an ASEAN Maritime Centre

to be hosted by the Philippines. Next slide, please.

For the entire ASEAN chairship up to the end of the year, we also

continue to support the House of Representatives in matters

relating to the ASEAN Interparliamentary Assembly and by

providing inputs, guidance and substance and logistics support

for the House of Representatives. Continuing on to

maritime interests in the West Philippine Sea, this year, in

July, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the landmark 2016

Arbitral Award, and we continue to look at the award as the legal

foundation for the protection of our sovereign rights, sovereignty

and jurisdiction over the West Philippine Sea. In 2026, so far,

the department has undertaken 33 diplomatic protests to defend

the sovereign rights and jurisdictions. And on 12 July

2026, at the anniversary of the Arbitral Award, the Philippines

and its partner countries issued a joint statement,

to affirm that the 2016 award is legally binding and final,

rejecting China's claims of historic rights in the South China

Sea, and calls on all parties to abide by the award and to settle

disputes peacefully under the UN Convention on the Law of the

Sea. Beyond this joint statement, we have also received support,

written support from the European Union, Germany, Japan, the Republic

of Korea, each of which issued their own statements in support of the award.

Beyond the award, the Philippines also delivered the official presentation of our partial

submission concerning the country's entitlements to an extended continental shelf in the West

Philippine Sea, covering the West Palawan region, before the UN Convention on the limits

of the continental shelf at UN headquarters in New York.

Next slide, please. The Philippines also, sorry, the DFA also led in preparations for the

following bilateral engagements, led by the President, several outbound visits to the United

Arab Emirates, the United States, Japan, Canada, Russia, and Singapore,

and to welcome incoming leaders from Vietnam, Bhutan, Paraguay, the

Republic of Korea, Germany, and the 10 ASEAN member states at the 40th ASEAN

Summit in Cebu earlier this year. At the ministerial level, the Secretary

also welcomed 55 foreign ministers last month at the ASEAN ministerial

meeting, and met with 38 of her counterparts during the one week

of the ASEAN ministerial meeting. These engagements served to build and strengthen

alliances and partnerships with countries, and promote the Philippine economic interests,

particularly in trade and investment, and to strengthen people-to-people ties.

Next slide, please. At the United Nations, in March 2026, the President conducted a working

visit to New York, where he addressed a special session of the UN General Assembly on the rule

of law, multilateralism, and the peaceful settlement of disputes. The President also

delivered the Philippine National Statement at the 70th session of the Commission on the

Status of Women, and met with the UN Secretary General. At the sidelines of the 80th UNGA,

the Philippines, the DFA, continued high-level side events on financing and partnership for

loss and damage, with the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, advancing climate justice and

climate finance for a country as explosive to climate risk as the Philippines. The Secretary

of Foreign Affairs also convened a foreign ministerial meeting on maritime security,

with 40 countries participating, 28 countries delivering interventions highlighting the

role of the multilateral system and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in ensuring

maritime peace and security. Next slide, please. On economic cooperation, the Philippines and the

DFA continues to support several of our economic thrusts on education, creative industries,

and technical cooperation, including the mutual recognition agreements to facilitate recognition

abroad of Philippine educational credentials. We also support the Philippine Creative Industries

Development Plan 2026 to 2034, promote Filipino creative talent and content and design abroad. And for technical

cooperation, we are also spearheading the Philippines' efforts to strengthen South-South

cooperation, highlighting the Philippines' role as a development cooperation partner. Next slide, please.

In terms of protecting overseas Filipinos, we have 10.5 million Filipinos overseas at this time,

2.7 million of whom are overseas Filipino workers,

with a direct purview of the Department of Migrant Workers. Everyone else who is now classified as

overseas Filipino workers, including tourists, students, migrants, spouses of foreign nationals,

fall within the purview of the Department of Foreign Affairs, and we continue to assist them

in this regard. Also, in jurisdictions and countries where there are no resident migrant workers offices,

it is the DFA which still leads in protecting and promoting the rights of our kababayans.

So on the slide, we can see two

almost 3,000 ATN fund beneficiaries, 16 Legal Assistance Fund beneficiaries as of 31 July.

We also lead in repatriating human trafficking victims from mainland Southeast Asia,

more than 1,000 of them, and almost 2,000 repatriated and assisted Filipinos during

the Middle East crisis. So far, we have 67 Foreign Service posts where we do not have a resident migrant workers

office. Next slide please. We also serve to bring consular services closer to the

Filipino people. During the year we processed over 1.5 million passports,

issued over 67,000 visas and e-visas, issued 413,000 apostille certificates

and e-apostille certificates, and processed over 36,000 civil registry

reports. We have 42 consular offices nationwide, and we undertook 35 passport

on Wheels activities as of 31 August 2026. Next slide please. Part of bringing

world-class services closer to the Filipino people is the digital

transformation of our consular services. So far as of 16 March 2026, we have fully

online digital apostille for PSA civil registry e-certificates,

CHED academic records, and Marina seafarer certificates, and we are currently

working with other government agencies issuing such certificates so that we can

make all of these fully online. We have also 77 of our Foreign Service posts now

issuing e-visas, and we are cooperating with DICT on the phased rollout of this

e-visa issuance. Next slide please. Again to bring services closer to the

Filipino people in various jurisdictions

around the world, we have opened three Foreign Service post in 2025. Our first

resident embassy in the Pacific, in Suva, Fiji, covering over 1,500 Filipinos. We

reopened a consulate general in Busan, and Southern Republic of Korea, which

covers 20,000 Filipinos, and we reopened our consulate general in Seattle, in

Washington State, which covers 167,000 Filipinos, not only in Washington State,

but in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest.

Next slide, please.

In 2026 and over to 2027,

we are going to be opening four new foreign service posts.

Our Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City,

which covers 1,800 Filipinos

and is also the economic hub of Vietnam,

we opened, I think, two months ago.

We will be opening before the end of the year

our embassy in Accra, Ghana,

and our first resident embassy in Central Asia

in Astana, Kazakhstan.

And by early next year or sometime next year,

we will be opening our Consulate General in Miami,

servicing over 200,000 Filipinos

in the U.S. Southwest and the Caribbean.

Next slide, please.

As the Secretary mentioned,

we are requesting a budget of 35 billion pesos,

which represents 0.49% of the total proposed national budget.

And next slide, please.

Briefly, a big part of that budget

will go to the implementation

of the new next-generation Philippine passport.

We are hoping to redesign the passport booklet

to make it fully compliant with ICAO

and with enhanced security features,

additional pages for a full 10-year validity,

and the latest contactless chip technology.

The estimated indicative launch of the e-passport,

the new generation e-passport,

is June 2028.

But over the next year,

we would need to

phase in the requirements we needed

for the rollout of the next-generation passport.

Next slide, please.

FY 2027 budgetary thrusts for national security include

enhancing bilateral strategic partnerships,

multilateral and regional mechanisms,

and of course,

continuing to protect our sovereignty

in our maritime domain.

Next slide, please.

For economic security,

we will continue to raise awareness

on Philippine creative industries,

promote opportunities

from free trade agreements,

champion services trade facilitation,

and development cooperation

as an economic enabler

and to leverage our participation

in APEC, ASEAN,

the UN and other multilateral

economic forums. Next slide, please. For our services to

the public we will continue to promote and from protect the rights and

welfare of overseas Filipinos we will actively engage with national agencies

including the DMW or BI and others to protect our overseas Filipinos we are

also rolling out programs to enhance Filipino communities overseas

preparedness during national emergencies in their host countries and

we are also continuing with developing a data-driven evidence-based database for

overseas Filipinos next slide please for consular and other services we will

continue to improve our authentication and apostille coverage and of course as

mentioned earlier the preparations for the next generation of Philippine

passport continue bilateral consular cooperation provide undisrupted

consular services

and in the lead-up to the elections in 2028 to assist Comelec in overseas

voting registration and voting proper next slide please in terms of

organizational development we will continue with our ICT programs aligned

with the ICT's ISP and BT we will we have established the our own

information communications and technology office and we are now in the

process of operationalizing this to improve consular services using IT

and other online platforms we are also in the currently retrofitting the DFA

headquarters in 2330 Ross Boulevard and we will continue capacity building for

DFA personnel at the final slide for this presentation next slide please

again to summarize the DFA and its attached agencies are requesting the

House of Representatives' support for thirty-four point nine zero two billion

pesos budget as shown on the screen and to present the technical details of our

budget proposal i would like to turn over to assistant secretary Emilio Fernandez

of our Office of Financial Management Services. Thank you.

good afternoon your honors the twenty twenty seven NEP level of the DFA and

its attached agencies stands at thirty five point one seven billion pesos this

is a

17% increase compared to the 2026 nep of 30.09 billion pesos okay i'll just wait for the

slide presentation okay third slide please okay next slide all right this slide shows the breakdown

of the nep for the dfa and its attached agencies the rightmost column shows the percentage change

of the 2027 nep against the department's 2026 ga level with the dfa osec receiving a 22% increase

and the attached agencies showing slight declines next slide this slide shows the dfa's budget in

2025 and 2026 and next year's proposed budget the amount increased by about 1 billion in 2026

and by some 6.3 billion in 2027 the reasons for which we will expound on later next slide

now this slide shows the 2027 nep by allotment class with omooe continuing to take the largest

share at 54 followed by personnel services at 39 and capital outlay at seven percent next slide

now this slide provides the main reasons for

the changes in the budget for ps we have three things the implementation of the fourth tranche

of the updated salary

schedule, ito yung ating basic salary. There's also the implementation of the, also fourth

tranche of the increase in foreign service allowances. And there's the transfer of the

budget of the Technical Cooperation Council of the Philippines, which has been integrated

to the DFA. For MOE, we have four reasons as well. We have the initial funding for the

next-gen passport at 2.8 billion pesos. There's the provision for foreign exchange fluctuations

and inflation, particularly for FSPs, and additional funds for rents of FSPs to cover

the annual increases in their contracts. And there's also the increase for the MOE component

of the ISSP projects. Finally, for capital outlay, three factors to note. As directed

by the Development Budget Coordinator, we have the need to increase the capital outlay

for the ISSP projects. And this is true for all agencies. There's also no appropriations

for the opening of additional FSPs in 2027. Next slide. Let me provide some of the highlights

for each of the allotment classes for the DFA's proposed budget. For PS, there is the

provision of 3.6 billion pesos.

For the salaries and benefits of its 3,000-plus personnel, there is 9.9 billion for the Foreign

Service Allowances of DFA's personnel overseas. And about 345 million pesos has been set aside

as terminal leave benefits for those scheduled to retire. Next slide. For MOE, we have 5.8

billion for passports, including the implementation of the next-generation passport.

billion for the International Commitments Fund to cover mandatory contributions to

international organizations and the hosting of international conferences. There is 1.2

billion for the ATN and legal assistance fund, 957 million for ICT expenditures, 572 million

for the Deployment Fund, and about 45 million

pesos for overseas voting next slide please for moe and capital outlay we have the building fund

used for the redevelopment acquisition expansion and major repairs of government-owned chanceries

and official residences abroad it's in the amount of 1.4 billion there's also the retrofitting

project with its moe component for the lease of its temporary offices and the project management

cost as well as the capital outlay component for the retrofitting of the permanent headquarters

along ross boulevard and its interior fit out work next slide as far as the dfa's performance

is concerned a very satisfactory rating was again obtained from dbm's agency performance review

for 2025 in the area of physical performance which checks if agencies finished

their targeted programs activities and projects the department did very well in meeting its

targets for all of its indicators with accomplishment figures between 96 and 100

next night for the dfa's financial performance a bur of 80 percent in 2025 was realized next slide

and this slide shows the dfa's major programs and their corresponding utilization

this year and using last year's continuing appropriations they include passports

the icf building fund the retrofitting project ATN and legal assistance funds and the Motor Vehicle Refleeting

program the next slide shows the allocation and utilization of the budget of the department's

major programs

and the level of investment the department has made in the past the past five years

next slide we could trace the department's bur performance in 2025 to a number of factors

there was a slight delay in the retrofitting of the dfa headquarters in 2025 owing to a failure

in the initial bidding and it was not until the middle of the year when the project began. Likewise,

ATN functions were formally transferred to DMW, created in 2023, leading to decreased

utilization of the ATN and legal assistance funds. Moreover, a number of

building fund projects were deferred due to cost escalations, feasibility

concerns, and constraints imposed by host country regulatory requirements. Also,

there's the shifting demand for passports, owing to the lengthening of

their validity to 10 years. Next slide. Finally, for the first half of the year,

a BUR of close to 53% was realized, and the DFA is ensuring the proper

utilization of its remaining funds for the rest of the year, and it is hopeful

that it will equal, if not surpass, last year's figures. Maraming salamat po.

Thank you. Thank you, sir.

At this point, we will entertain the interpolations of our distinguished

colleagues. May I remind our distinguished colleagues that each member is allotted

five minutes for questions or interpolation, excluding the responses

of the resource persons. When the bell sounds, the member has 30 seconds to

conclude. Consistent with the long-standing practice of the House, the

Chair shall recognize minority, independent, and majority members in an

alternating manner when practicable.

The Chair first recognizes the Honorable Perci Cendaña from the minority.

Good afternoon, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon, Madam Secretary. Radiant in pink today.

Let me begin with an administrative question before I proceed to the

broader policy questions that I will raise today. Memo Order No. 24,

series of 1992, and the July 2025 memo on strengthening the legislative liaison

system require legislative liaison officers in each department to have the

rank of at least Assistant Secretary. Previous DFA leaderships have assigned

senior Foreign Service officers. Many are ASIC level to lead the DLLU. May we ask

our dear Foreign Affairs Secretary, ano po ang rank ng assigned sa DLLU ngayon?

Thank you, Your Honor. First of all, the persons who are in charge of the DLLU,

now, is a home-based personnel, meaning this person will not be given an opportunity to be

assigned abroad. That's what we call a home-based personnel. Now, indeed, you're correct that in the

past, the DFA legislative liaison unit was given to assistant secretaries with the rank of chief

of mission tour ambassadors. However, it is because of the reorganization of the department

and by the fact that DLLU means DFA legislative liaison unit, and it is just merely a unit which

is attached to the department, to the office of the secretary. And therefore, I am given the

discretion on who to appoint. And it is my view, as secretary of foreign affairs, that the person

that should be in charge of this unit should be somebody who should be

know

the history or also know the personnel of both Houses,

which will enable us to deal with both houses efficiently. So that, Your Honor, is the reason. I think there is

only one office, I think. I just surmise. It is the PLLO, which is based in the palace, whereby it is with a ranking.

with the rank of assistant secretary but in our you know in the department of foreign affairs it

is a unit and therefore it doesn't have to be with the rank of a chief of mission too

because there are other offices that we have reconstituted and reorganized and we need those um

those um assistant secretaries with that corresponding rank thank you

thank you mr

Chair, Madam Secretary. Sana po bigyan po natin ng sapat na halaga at importansya yung trabaho natin with the House of Representatives and the legislative branch of government by assigning an ASEC-level liaison officer.

considering dfa's historical practice existing memorandum and the nature

of dfa's dealings with congress on legislative matters

Sana po ay mag-commit ang DFA to assign a DLLU head na at least ASEC level. And this is the humble appeal of this representation to the good Secretary.

Thank you, Your Honor. I just want to reiterate that when it comes to the

pagdating po sa halaga ng House of Representatives, ito po ay of utter, of paramount importance, and the reason that we are

given a home-based personnel because it is really under the office of the secretary

anything but everything that is conveyed or through our conduit it is really um me myself and

the other undersecretaries who act on it for [unclear]. Salamat po.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, Madam Secretary. We insist that the good

secretary consider this a decision and we hope that there will be time between now and the

plenary for the consideration of this decision thank you mr chair madam secretary let me move

on to other issues. Ito po yung usapin ng, I'm sure you're expecting that Akbayan will ask this question. Sukatin niyo na po kami pagdating dito.

Alam naman po natin na patuloy ang pang-angkin ng China sa West Philippine Sea

philippine sea at walang tigil po ang pamubuli nito sa ating philippine coast guard pero

Pero nabalitaan po natin na ang DFA has referred to an arrangement with China concerning rotation and

resupply missions to Ayungin Shoal. Pwede po ba naming malaman ang nature at scope ng arrangement na ito? Madam Secretary, Mr. Chair.

Your Honor, gusto ko lang po linawin, ito po ba yung arrangement ng Philippine Coast Guard with the

Chinese Coast Guard, or ito po you're pertaining

to the rotation, the RO-RE?

RO-RE po. We're pertaining to the RO-RE po, Madam Secretary.

if you're looking at the arrangement well let me just give the genesis of this this um provisional

arrangement came about as a result of the june 2024 whereby uh one of our um uh personnel uh

armed personnel, naputol po yung daliri.

it was a very tense moment that it almost i think in the defense uh uh area um it was a very tense

moment and therefore we were requested at that time by concerned uh security agencies that the

department of foreign affairs should try to come up with an arrangement with uh with with china

and therefore this provisional arrangement, which is actually allowed under UNCLOS. Now, what does

this entail

It's very, very important, and one of the important provisions is not to

prejudice the positions that we have had. That means UNCLOS and the 2016 Arbitral Award.

so what is the basis here is actually information exchange but i have to tell you your honor that

when this provision arrangement was done it is now shifted it is the the operational side is with afp

as well as the Coast Guard. So kami lang po, hindi po kami pumupunta sa karagatan,

pero we are there to support our defense agencies in trying to give, I mean trying to

get the connection or it's the information exchange aspect of the provisional arrangement

May we know, Mr. Chair, Madam Secretary, if this is a written arrangement? Meron po ba tayong pinirmahan o exchange of notes?

It is actually an exchange of notes, Your Honor.

So, sino po ang nag-negotiate, under whose authority, at anong mga ahensya ang kinonsulta natin para po dito?

All the agencies, the security agencies are very much involved, particularly the NSC.

thus the arrangement madam secretary mr chair in any way

limit the philippines ability to conduct resupply uh rotation repair or other lawful activities

within our own exclusive economic zone

well this is a provisional arrangement only in this

particular shoal, the Ayungin Shoal, because this is with particular reference only

to the Sierra Madre ship. That's why it's called RO-RE: RO, rotation; RE, reprovisioning of necessities.

Opo. Kasi po, para po sa mga kababayan nating nakikinig, parang every time na lang po... Maraming salamat. May [unclear] question po yata.

Mukha pong tinatanong ng mga kababayan natin kung bakit po mahalaga yung RO-RE. Kasi po, tandaan po natin,

nandun po ang BRP Sierra Madre, ang ating first among our frontliners

na kailangan ng regular na resupply mission

para sa kanilang pangangailangan. Pero every time po magre-resupply tayo, laging extra challenge.

Para siyang amazing race

with the forces of China

blocking our capacity

to provide the necessary supplies

to our frontliners of the West Philippine Sea.

Hindi na po ako magtatanong ng masyado pang detalye, Madam Secretary, because I understand the nature of the information.

But given the constitutional responsibilities of the Congress, will the DFA provide...

appropriate congressional committee with the complete terms of the arrangement even in an

executive or confidential session if necessary

we are at your disposal your honor but i just want to

to uh to um affirm or to reconfirm confirm that there had been 16 rores for the past two years

without incident i just want to reiterate to emphasize that

thank you for that madam secretary

and we will hold you to your commitment that you will share with us the details of this um

arrangement made with a china um let me go to my last set of questions i understand that

i still have a few more minutes um, ito naman po ay tungkol doon sa austerity measures, no?

Meron po tayong na-receive na report na nag-celebrate sa five star hotel

Hotels, I'm sorry, na nag-celebrate sa five star hotels ang independence day celebration

ang DFA. So meaning ay yung independence day celebrations natin

here and abroad, kahit may memo na tayo to observe austerity can the department confirm this if this

indeed took place madam secretary mr chair

um i i i'm sorry uh your honor just to repeat your

your question

we receive reports madam secretary that the dfa conducted independence day

celebrations in five-star hotels even if there's already a memo directing us to observe austerity

measures

may we confirm it this actually took place

um your honor i think there would be um i because of the

memo that has been uh furnished all our foreign service posts i think most of them have exercised

austerity measures however there are very important posts which in the view of the ambassador as the

person on the ground because it's the 80th anniversary is the 50th anniversary that they

took it upon themselves to

be more than the usual, in the sense, like, I'll just give you a perfect example: Washington, D.C.

that was an ed celebration of the 80th anniversary of philippine u.s relations however it is um

even when i was ambassador and my funds are not enough there's always certain uh um

funds that can be sourced out so um we'll i think that's that's the response and it is the view

that um if if there was a slight uh um it i would i will not consider it extravagance but

it is the importance of the of the celebration but generally your honor i think austerity

uh was practiced by almost all of our foreign service posts thank you

thank you uh madam

Secretary. Mr. Chair, may the committee request the DFA to provide a spending breakdown per Foreign

service post including expenses for venues catering receptions entertainment transportation

and related costs in time for a plenary thank you mr chair and um before i end this round of

questioning to provide the opportunity to other members of the house i'd like to reiterate our

humble appeal to the good secretary for the designation of the dllu with the rank of at least

assistant secretary and this question we will raise again in the plenary thank you very much

madam secretary mr chair

thank you our congressman sendenya um may we now call on representative brian poe from the majority

thank you very much mr chair uh mr chair before i say anything else i want to preface uh with

the fact that i would like to acknowledge the best and the brightest one of our most professional

agencies the department of foreign affairs especially in this time though mr chair wherein

uh global tensions are high

foreign affairs plays a very vital role in making sure that we're able to put our best foot forward

and negotiations on both economic and security matters so it's very important that we're able

to support them in this budget cycle with that being said as their chair i i'll take off from

where my colleague left us and i just want to ask about the um the status of our diplomatic protests

i believe within the first half of the year alone we filed 27 protests and of course this is in

relation to the west philippine sea now has anything materialized because of these protests

what can we report back as kind of our achievements in this front

um thank you your honor

um thank you very much for your very kind words your initial statement um actually we have a total

39 protests for 20 diplomatic protests for 2026. um your question if there were any changes um if

um well the only change that i can cite right now is that the uh incidents that have happened in the

past um the um the the the water cannon the laser i think it has sort of uh decreased and therefore

this

are the significant changes although we know very well that our defense establishments have always

been uh um citing also the um the um the chinese military vessels so that's the only change but

uh your honor i'd like to refer this to our um um executive director for our maritime affairs

office we have more information please

thank you madam secretary um good afternoon

uh your honor as already mentioned by the secretary from 2026 this year we have

issued already 39 protests and for the whole year i mean from 2022 to 2026

the total number of diplomatic protests that we have issued this uh stands at 296 ready

but we have to understand also that results on the ground may take time because while diplomacy

is the bigger toolbox in the government's uh bigger tool in the government's toolbox we have to work

in tandem with other government agencies particularly our security agencies our national

maritime council because this is a whole of government effort so all these things will factor

in this is not to say that we expect to see immediate results because it we have to be patient

we have to take time but if we have to take time to do something we have to take time to do things

what the president has always mentioned that we have to give diplomacy and dialogue a chance

thank you your honor

thank you um that's that's really the point no i was happy to hear from the

the secretary that we have less incidents no of water cannons and of lasers uh in the west

philippine sea because this is a whole of nation approach as you said there are other agencies and

other departments involved uh and whatever effort the dfa puts in with these diplomatic uh protests

uh also supports uh our front liners including the coast guard and of course our fisher folk no

um so i just wanted to ask about that so that at least on the record we can tell

our constituents that something happened because we have diplomatic protests and the efforts of

the dfa continue we are not discouraged that even if we have 100 200 plus diplomatic protests

we will continue as long as there are any violations we feel of our sovereignty

Uh, with that being said, the second question I want to ask is para sa mga OFWs natin or yung mga constituents, mga Filipinos sa Nepal,

do we have a complete list of those who are affected and what is the dfa doing to support

uh our kababayan abroad

initial thank you very much your honor initial reaction is that we do not

have a foreign service establishment in Nepal, so we rely only on our embassy in New Delhi,

which has jurisdiction over Nepal and that area.

More so, we have an honorary consul

in Kathmandu, which is the capital of Nepal, that I think

the honorary consul himself is also

affected however based on the information and uh of course that is cascading to our embassy in delhi

there is um there were filipinos there but there's only one missing uh and uh all efforts now have

I mean, all the resources, international organizations as well as the local authorities are still in the process of searching, as there are many. Reports said that there are about 4,000 missing persons. So now, I think we ask the family for the DNA so that we can match it with those bodies that are around the area.

Of course, the situation in Nepal is very unfortunate. We have one kababayan that's missing, and I'm glad to hear that there are efforts to identify possibly through DNA matching. But at least may update po tayo dito.

Speaking of a kababayan that has passed away, there is the case of Sam De La Cruz. He was a 25-year-old migrant worker who was working on a fishing vessel. He passed away in 2018.

And his body was buried somewhere in Somalia. And the family, until now, is still requesting that his body be returned to the Philippines. Is there any update on Sam De La Cruz?

Your Honor, I would refer you to our officer in charge of migrant affairs, please.

Thank you, Madam Secretary. Good afternoon, Honorable Member of the House. Thank you for this opportunity.

We traced the information, and I can confirm that Mr. Sam De La Cruz is a former seafarer who was registered with the agency of GMM Global Maritime in Manila.

He died in July 2018 due to cardiopulmonary arrest back in 2018.

I would like to state first that the DFA understands the immense difficulty.

And emotional pain the family continues to endure during this prolonged process.

The DFA remains committed to supporting the De La Cruz family in coordination with Global Maritime.

The case, which dates back to 2018, sir, has been complicated by various factors.

First was, of course, the COVID-19 pandemic.

And it's...

What had happened in Somalia, which has immediate...

Which applies Islamic Sharia, and therefore burying the remains immediately, and other logistical concerns.

The DFA had...

I have a record of all the diplomatic notes that had been sent by our embassy in Nairobi, Kenya,

which has responsibility over Somalia.

Since we also do not have a mission in Somalia.

And at that time, they had not received an official reply from the government of Somalia.

GMM, the agency, also communicated with Somali authorities back in November 2018, and had located the burial site in Bosaso,

which is about a thousand kilometers away from Mogadishu, the capital.

Uh, and had worked to secure permits and funding for exhumation of the remains.

Despite preliminary agreement with local officials, negotiations stalled, and the plan did not proceed.

Uh, back in, uh, in 2025 last year, we had asked our, uh, embassy in Nairobi to engage again with the embassy, with the Philippine, with the Somali embassy.

Nairobi to convey our request to the government in Mogadishu, Somalia, and unfortunately they

had not yet also received any reply officially.

With that update, we will re-instruct or send instructions again to our embassy in Nairobi

to meet with the embassy of Somalia in Nairobi to revive this issue.

Thank you, sir.

Thank you very much, and I appreciate how thorough the discussion is on this and how

well you've kept track of this situation.

That shows that you truly care about the Filipino that we lost abroad and that you care about

the plight of their family.

This is an important message that we need to send all of our migrants.

We need to remind our migrant workers that the DFA will continue to keep working for

you.

The assurance that I was looking for in this committee hearing was just the assurance that

the DFA will continue to try its best to bring home the body of our kababayan.

But understanding the situation, of course it's difficult with Somalia, the diplomatic

ties that we don't have a mission there, and of course the fact that they're not responding

to us is not our fault, but we should not stop knocking at their door to ask for the

body back.

Thank you.

So with that being said, I want to move now to the assessment of an important document,

and that's the Mombasa Declaration.

This would affect us because of our status as a maritime nation with our fishing, etc.

What is the position or what is the assessment of the DFA when it comes to the Mombasa Declaration?

Again, thank you, Mr. Chair.

I mean, rather, Your Honor.

I would like to refer this to my Assistant Secretary for UN and other international organizations

on this, particularly of this Mombasa Declaration.

I'm sorry, it's not you; it's our maritime affairs office again because this pertains to fishing personnel.

please

thank you madam secretary your honor for having the floor again and um the mombasa

declaration is an international commitment to increase fisheries transparency and in the global

efforts to combat illegal unreported fishing iouf and this was adopted last june 17 2026 by

16 countries and of course we we acknowledge and recognize the leadership of the good congressman

your advocacy on blue economy climate resilience and environmental protection for being the head

of delegation during the 11th hour ocean

conference which was held in mombasa kenya last 16 to 18. and for our consultation with the

department of agriculture particularly with the bureau of fisheries and aquatic resources before

because this is uh they are the primary government agency in charge of fisheries and in fact in

combating illegal unreported fishing iuf there were some concerns as regards the open access provisions

in the

mombasa declaration particularly on the sharing of sensitive fisheries information

data ownership and confidentiality but regardless of our current status the the philippine government

is already in fact implementing certain measures like the ship identifiers which you already have

and there are also efforts to combat iuf this is not a new issue for the philippines but we want to

assure the uh the good congressman that we will continue to coordinate and consult with the dab

far to come up with a firmer position on the mambasa declaration thank you your honor

thank you

Thank you. Ito yung gusto ko sa DFA eh kasi pag may tanong, hindi 'we will get back to you'; kumpleto yung background,

yung current status, etc. Ito yung gusto ko sa mga committee hearings na prepared yung mga agencies.

uh agencies so with that concern i'm hoping that you can keep me abreast no as to the development

of the official position of the DFA when it comes to the declaration para I can, with my counterparts

abroad uh i can also keep them updated on the the status here in the philippines so maraming salamat

po my last one my last question is something that i think uh for kababayans who aren't too familiar

about, want to know what exactly is the role of the DFA when it comes to Pax Silica, just for clarity.

uh thank you again uh your honor

as of the present time the issue of pac silica is really an issue between and that is being tackled

by the department of trade and industry and bcda um it is not within the purview of the department

of foreign affairs because even the signing of the document of pac silica was signed by a

representative from the department of trade and industry so that is as far as we're concerned

however if it is concerning the luzon economic corridor

which is also in conjunction with the pac silica project then we have we are aware of it since

this is one of the projects of the tripartite meeting which is between among the u.s japan

and the philippines thank you

but uh in terms of the uh pac silica project um does the dfa play any

kind of advisory or um consulting role

um your honor it do it is during the initial stages when

the secretary of the state department has been calling on many of the concerned agencies of

government and of course i was one of them that i was able to talk to the the person in charge

who is an undersecretary level so um of course the the the concept itself i think is very good

but uh again um this is something that has to be um now that it has a certain uh area that is being

considered i think it's now within the hands of um the two the two other agencies but initially

during the initial discussions of course i think they were looking at how we see things for us

even initially i think we were all it was it was a very good uh concept because i think it is

actually the ai data it is um the concerning critical minerals and the micro or the computer

um semiconductor industry and for us if this becomes a reality i think this will mean more jobs

and going up the ladder in terms of technology thank you

i just wanted to make sure that our

kababayans are aware that the area of responsibility really falls on dti as well as bcda

when it comes to this agreement and that it's economic in nature