MANILA, Philippines -- Calling President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo?s US trip as ?too outrageous and too extravagant,? an official of a militant group has urged the President to instead practice ?austerity? and prioritize the national interest as the country continued to recover from Typhoon ?Frank.?

In a statement on Tuesday, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan, New Patriotic Alliance) secretary general Renato Reyes said Arroyo should prioritize national interest at the height of the devastation caused by ?Frank? (international codename: Fengshen).

He added that Arroyo?s trip to the US would not be beneficial to the country.

?In a time of severe economic crisis and calamity, government must take the lead in practicing austerity. What we are seeing with the Arroyo administration is the exact opposite. Having 59 congressmen, one senator and 10 cabinet secretaries on a foreign trip doesn?t do the country any good. If anything, it is the height of insensitivity,? he said.

Reyes added that Arroyo?s trip would only ?boost unequal bilateral relations? between the country and US and it would allow foreigners to intervene in domestic affairs.

?Philippine officials probably want to be seen in Washington, hobnobbing with ranking American officials. This is classic colonial thinking, the kind that translates into foreign policies such as allowing American troops to intervene in our domestic affairs and allowing American corporations to plunder our country?s resources,? he said.