Legarda to Marcoleta: It’s never too late to take masters in national security

The Senate hearing on Tuesday took a heated turn after Senator Loren Legarda advised fellow lawmaker Rodante Marcoleta to take postgraduate studies in national security to understand the history of the Spratly Islands.

This was following Marcoleta’s questioning Filipino adventurer Tomas Cloma’s discovery of the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG), which was previously mentioned by Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson.

“It’s never too late to take masters in national security. Batikan na abugado na kayo (You are already a seasoned lawyer),” Legarda said.

To which Marcoleta countered, “Provided they exclude the Tomas Cloma issue.”

“Totoo naman iyun ah (But isn’t that true)? That is the historical fact”, Legarda responded.

Legarda insisted that it is important for lawmakers’ statements about the West Philippine Sea to be based on correct history.

During a hearing of the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security, Peace, Unification and Reconciliation, Marcoleta claimed that Lacson “erroneously cited” that Cloma was the one who discovered the Spratly Islands, which houses the Kalayaan Island Group. —RF, GMA Integrated News