Senate President Pro-Tempore Panfilo Lacson and Sen. Rodante Marcoleta engaged in another heated exchange over the Kalayaan Island Group, focusing on whether Tomas Cloma should be remembered as a discoverer or merely a seafarer. This occurred during a Senate hearing on Monday. Lacson cited historical facts to defend the Philippines' position in the region.
During a Senate hearing on national defense and security, peace, unification, and reconciliation on Monday, the two senators again traded barbs over the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) in the West Philippine Sea.
Marcoleta insisted that Cloma was merely a seafarer and not a discoverer, disregarding historical records of his 1947 discovery of Spratly features and his 1956 claim staking. "It should be corrected if Tomas Cloma was really there. It should not be distorted. Tomas Cloma was a seafarer, he’s not a discoverer," he said.
He also claimed he was misquoted regarding suggestions to give up the KIG, clarifying that he meant the need for a map of the West Philippine Sea. Marcoleta accused a senator of splicing his remarks, hinting at an ethics case, referring to Lacson. "Somebody suggested, that I said, I’m trying to remove the KIG from the territory of this country, by presenting a spliced narrative," Marcoleta stated. "This is serious. No less than a senator of the republic did this. We will come to this in proper time."
Lacson retorted that Marcoleta had not moved on from the issue, jesting that Cloma might be rolling in his grave. Citing the Kalayaan municipality's website, Lacson noted Cloma's formal possession on May 15, 1956, via a “Notice to the Whole World” for 33 features in the Spratlys. On July 6, 1956, Cloma made an independence claim for the “Free Territory of Freedomland” on Flat Island, ceding it to the Philippine government for P1.
This led to Presidential Decree 1596 by Ferdinand Marcos in 1978, delineating the KIG as part of the Philippines. Cloma's actions faced strong opposition from Taiwan and China but provided a basis for the Philippines' claim to the KIG. "Some people still cannot move on from Tomas Cloma. Here are the historical facts, so Cloma can be left alone to rest in peace," Lacson said.
The debate highlights ongoing discussions on historical claims in the region, with no contradictions noted in the statements.
