Manila, Philippines – President Benigno S. Aquino III has declared that the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) will withstand legal scrutiny in the Supreme Court.
In an interview with the Philippine media after he attended the 24th Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN) Summit on Sunday, President Aquino said the government panel had made sure that the provisions of the EDCA are in accordance with the Constitution.
“Consistently, when they were reporting to me, we kept on working on fine-tuning it to make sure that it adheres completely with the Constitution,” the President said during the interview at the Horizon Lake View Resort before returning to Manila.
He said that while there are people who will derail the implementation of the agreement, he is still optimistic that it will pass the court’s scrutiny.
“So will it stand scrutiny? Yes. Will there be people who will try to derail it? Yes, also. But we are reasonably confident that anybody looking at it objectively will be able to say that we have met all the stipulations in the Constitution,” he said.
The EDCA was signed by Philippine and US government officials hours before US President Barack Obama arrived in the Philippines last May 28 for a two-day state visit.
The agreement allows US troops greater access to designated Philippine military facilities, as well as construct facilities and pre-position aircraft, vessels and equipment.
In a recent press briefing in Malacanang, Defense Undersecretary Pio Lorenzo Batino said the EDCA is an implementing agreement of treaties already established between the US and the Philippines, such as the Mutual Defense Treaty and the Visiting Forces Agreement.
