Marcos defends South China Sea ruling, hints at charges against cousin

Marcos used his State of the Nation speech to defend the South China Sea ruling and flag corruption charges against Martin Romualdez. The remarks fused foreign policy, accountability and energy security at a tense political moment.Image used for representational purposes onlyPhilippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. used his State of the Nation speech to make a veiled criticism of China, saying his government would defend the 2016 arbitration ruling that invalidated Beijing's expansive claims in the South China Sea and that Filipinos "do not yield" to conquerors. He also said corruption charges would soon be filed against former House of Representatives Speaker Martin Romualdez, his cousin and political ally.Marcos also spoke about the impact of fuel price rises caused by the war in Iran and said the Philippines may need to reconsider nuclear energy production. His remarks on China came days after Manila condemned a China Daily editorial video and cartoons that portrayed Filipinos as monkeys.Marcos did not mention China by name and did not elaborate on his criticism of Beijing, but his remarks drew applause from lawmakers. He said that "of late, our very humanity has been called into question" and told detractors that "Filipinos are a noble and a great race. We are not greedy. We are not racists. We are not liars."Last week, Marcos summoned Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan to his office in Manila after the China Daily, a Chinese state-owned media outlet, used AI-generated images that the Philippine government described as "racist and dehumanising" and demanded be taken down. The animations focused on Beijing's rejection of the arbitration ruling. In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said the video "does not represent the official position and I have no comment on it". He said, however, that China viewed the South China Sea arbitration as "a political farce disguised as a legal proceeding" and that "the so-called award is illegal, null and void and has no binding force", repeating China's longstanding position. Marcos said the ruling was final and binding and was a "definitive benchmark for the interpretation and application" of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which formed the basis of the decision. The Philippines initiated the arbitration in 2013 after a tense standoff between Chinese and Philippine ships in a disputed shoal, but China refused to take part and rejected the decision as a sham. "Your government will do all that is necessary to continue upholding this award, utilising every peaceful and legal means available to the republic against any attempt, foreign or domestic, to undermine this achievement," Marcos said, adding that Filipinos "do not yield". Confrontations in the disputed waters have become more frequent in recent years, especially among Chinese, Philippine and Vietnamese forces and fishing fleets. The disputes in the waterway also involve Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.On the domestic front, Marcos did not name Romualdez, but he was clearly referring to him while speaking about the corruption case. "This is painful to me, but we have to do the right thing," Marcos said. "I'm not a president for my family. I'm not a president for my friend." Romualdez, who resigned as House speaker last year but remains a member of Congress, said in a statement that he had not violated the law and was ready to prove it. Romualdez, along with several House members and senators, has been accused of pocketing huge kickbacks from flood control projects in government and congressional investigations. Marcos said others had been charged and detained for large-scale corruption, including an incumbent and a former senator, a former public works secretary who served under him, and several government engineers and construction company executives, though not Romualdez so far. He said nearly 25 billion pesos worth of cash and properties belonging to some suspects had been recovered or frozen, and some of it had been returned to the national treasury.Marcos also spoke at length about his administration's efforts to cushion ordinary Filipinos from fuel price increases caused by the war in Iran. To strengthen energy security, he said that "perhaps it is time for us to revisit nuclear energy production". "We will make sure it's safe," Marcos said, without elaborating. "We will also make sure that we can explain well to the public the good benefits of nuclear power." The Philippines built its first and only nuclear power plant in Bataan in the 1970s, but it was never used because of safety concerns and corruption.The speech brought together Marcos's foreign policy, anti-corruption push and energy plans, with his government insisting it would uphold the South China Sea ruling, pursue charges in the flood control scandal and consider nuclear power as part of its response to energy security concerns.With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Jul 27, 2026 20:00 IST