The spokesperson of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) for the West Philippine Sea, Jay Tarriela, answered the challenge of Sagip Party-list Rep. Paolo Marcoleta, saying he is ready to defend the country anytime and anywhere.

“Before I address your fearmongering statement—one that unfortunately echoes the narrative pushed by pro-China trolls—let me be clear: I will stand firm and fulfill my selfless patriotic duty to defend our country and our people, anywhere, anytime,” Tarriela posted on his X page on Sunday.

Earlier, Marcoleta suggested that Tarriela and other “arrogant” senators be positioned on the front line if China were to stage a war against the Philippines.

“Kung sakaling giyerahin tayo ng Tsina, ihilera niyo sa harap ng bakbakan itong spox ng Coast Guard at 'yung mayayabang na senador. Sila ang unang lumusob. O kaya ibala niyo sa kanyon.

Tingnan natin ang tapang nila,” he said in a social media post.

Tarriela hit back, saying that “without mentioning your disrespectful and discourteous remark to the Senators, it is concerning that a member of the House of Representatives would express themselves in a manner that appears to wish harm and demise upon our country,” he said.

“Why threaten our own people that could undermine our determination to uphold our sovereignty, sovereign rights, and maritime jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea? Finally, I extend to you the same invitation I am offering to your father: join us one day in an MDA (maritime domain awareness) flight and stroll along the coastline of Pag-asa Island. It would be an honor to bond with the Marcoleta father-and-son duo in KIG (Kalayaan Island Group)!” Tarriela wrote.

On 4 February, during a Commission on Appointments hearing, it was Sen. Rodante Marcoleta who suggested that the Philippines should give up the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) in Palawan, arguing that its features are “way beyond our exclusive economic zone (EEZ).”

The statement was later backpedaled, with Marcoleta saying some people were “abbreviating the context” of his remarks.

In a separate X post, also on Sunday, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson wrote: “In geopolitics, the most common sources of information are technical intelligence and homegrown traitors who are willing to sell their country in exchange for what’s in it for them. In intelligence operations, it is called ‘recruitment in place.’”

Lacson, however, did not identify whom he was referring to.

Amid the ongoing word war among Philippine lawmakers and some Chinese officials, Malacañang Palace distanced itself from the issue, saying it, along with the Department of Foreign Affairs, would remain neutral and diplomatic.

Senate lawmakers earlier signed a resolution declaring Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan persona non grata.

“May kaniya-kaniya po kasing opinyon. Ang Kongreso po ay may sarili silang mga activities na hindi naman po saklaw ng Pangulo, puwede po nilang ituloy iyon kung iyon po ang nakikita nila. Pero sa Pangulo po, alam po natin na ang polisiya po ng Pangulo at ng DFA ay maganda pong pag-uusap, diplomasya para sa mga ganitong usapin sa bansang China,” said Palace press officer and Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro, when asked whether the Palace would act as referee amid the tension between lawmakers and Chinese diplomatic representatives.

No inch to yield

Meanwhile, Dr. Jose Antonio Goitia, chairman emeritus of civic groups Alyansa ng Bantay sa Kapayapaan at Demokrasya, People’s Alliance for Democracy and Reforms, Liga Independencia Pilipinas, and the Filipinos Do Not Yield Movement, backed Tarriela, saying recent attacks on the Philippines’ legal position, particularly those aimed at the PCG and the Armed Forces of the Philippines, demand an unequivocal response.

“When institutions tasked with defending the Republic are undermined, neutrality ceases to be prudence. It becomes a surrender. Such attacks weaken the country precisely when resolve is required to defend sovereignty under international law,” Goitia told the Daily Tribune.

“Those who argued for retreat never thought of themselves as traitors. They wrapped surrender in the language of pragmatism, only for history to expose the cost. Today, the pattern repeats. Rights are portrayed as negotiable. Clarity is replaced by doubt. Retreat is sold as wisdom. This is collaboration by another name, and it succeeds only when Filipinos are persuaded to doubt themselves. What is presented as debate is, in truth, disinformation intended to hollow out the Republic from within,” he added.

Law clearer than seawaters

Goitia said the Philippines’ rights are firmly anchored in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and reinforced by the 2016 arbitral ruling that categorically rejected China’s sweeping maritime claims.

Even entertaining the idea of abandoning Philippine-held territory undermines the Republic’s legal defenses and strengthens those seeking to dispossess it, he said.

“This is how nations lose territory without firing a shot. They surrender the argument before it is even heard. The Philippines does not require separate coordinates to establish its Exclusive Economic Zone. Under UNCLOS, maritime zones arise by operation of law from archipelagic baselines. China’s so-called nine-dash line, by contrast, has no legal basis, no recognized coordinates, and no standing under international law. Treating it as credible is not an error. It is an inversion of truth,” he said.

The civic leader also criticized remarks by Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, Sen. Robin Padilla and several media figures, saying these do active harm to the Republic.

By questioning settled maritime rights and amplifying narratives crafted by a foreign power, they compromise the country’s legal position at a time when firmness is required.

“Sovereignty is not rhetorical,” Goitia said. “It is constitutional, legal, and binding. To cast doubt on it is to endanger the Republic’s defenses.”

Equally dangerous, he said, is portraying Philippine law enforcement operating within its own territory as provocation.

“Defending what is lawfully ours is not aggression. It is an obligation,” Goitia stressed.

He added that efforts by Chinese officials to discredit the Philippine Coast Guard, including the factual public briefings of Tarriela, form part of a coordinated disinformation campaign.

“There is no legal dispute over Palawan,” Goitia said. “Only a systematic campaign of falsehoods. Filipinos are not naïve. What is dangerous is the attempt to dress surrender as realism and retreat as wisdom. Every colonizer begins by telling a people they are too small to resist. That lie collapses every time Filipinos choose courage over fear. Defending Philippine sovereignty is not hostile toward others. It is fidelity to ourselves.”