Senator Joseph Victor "JV" Ejercito on Monday supported calls by various leaders and sectors for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to send Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian back to China.

In a chance interview, Ejercito said Huang, who has been China's envoy to the Philippines since 2019, should be sent back to China for "fueling the tension" in the West Philippine Sea.

"The Chinese ambassador here has been very hostile. He was supposed to be the diplomatic line. He was supposed to be the line to ease the tension because of the current circumstances," he said.

"However, what is happening is that he is the one fueling the tension. He is very hostile," he added.

According to Ejercito, the Chinese envoy's hostility was experienced directly by Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Romeo Brawner Jr.

"As a matter of fact, General Brawner even told us that they met at one event, and the envoy told him: 'Stop provoking us,'" he said.

"Instead of serving as a line to ease the tension, the harassment of our fishermen, of our Coast Guard, we hope he should be the bridge. However, he is the one adding the fuel to the fire," he added.

"My message to the ambassador: Go home, you are up to no good in our country," Ejercito said.

Senate President Juan Miguel "Migz" Zubiri on Sunday urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to send Huang back to China following the water-cannon incidents in the WPS over the weekend.

The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea reported that the China Coast Guard fired a water cannon to obstruct the country's resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal, seriously damaging one of the Philippine ships' engines in the process.

The incident happened just a day after the CCG blasted a water cannon at Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources vessels in the Scarborough Shoal, locally known as Bajo de Masinloc. The BFAR ships were bringing supplies to Filipino fishermen in the area.