The government should match its expressed commitment to defend its territory by allocating more funds to develop the marine features in the West Philippine Sea that it claims.

This according to House Deputy Speaker Ralph Recto who added that a "measly" P80-million allocation to strengthen Pag-asa Island in Kalayaan, Palawan in the West Philippine Sea, or WPS, sends a conflicting message about the determination of the government to defend the country's territory.

The amount is not even sufficient to cover the development of military facilities where geopolitical tensions have intensified, Recto said on Saturday.

The national government cannot just make "loud noises" in defending the WPS,

The government must set aside a greater budget for Pag-asa Island to help the security forces enforce their military might in the disputed area, he said.

Under the proposed P5.768-trillion national budget for 2024, the funds allocated for the improvement of the military infrastructure on Pag-asa Island are a mere P80 million, according to the Batangas lawmaker.

Speaking before the deliberations on the Department of National Defense budget scheduled for 7 September, he said: "Our occupation of Pag-asa is unchallenged. Conventional wisdom dictates that we transform an island we physically possess into a bulwark."

"Intruders in the area are expanding their real estate through massive reclamation, while ours is in danger of shrinking through coastal erosion," he added.

Two P40-M projects

The government has set aside only two projects, one costing P40 million for the construction of an "igloo-style ammunition storage" and another P40 million for a new two-story military personnel barracks that can be found in the P3.8 billion Tatag ng Imprastaktura para sa Kapayapaan at Seguridad Program, or TIKAS, under the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Recto said the share of Pag-asa Island, which hosts the Rancudo Air Station and Liwanag Naval Station, translates to a mere 2.1 percent of the TIKAS funds.

"I hope there is more hidden, crammed into other lump sum funds in the budget like the P50-billion AFP Modernization Fund for 2024. Or perhaps in the proposed capital outlays of the Navy (P5 billion) and the Air Force (P3.25 billion)," he said.

"But if it is just P80 million then who would have thought that the government would be proposing a budget that small for a frontline military outpost in the middle of an area rife with tension?" he said.