Alvarez congratulates Trump, hopes for better PH-US ties
House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez. RICHARD A. REYES/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on Wednesday said he hoped that the election of Donald Trump as the 45th US president would pave the way for better ties between Manila and Washington.
“I congratulate Republican Party candidate Donald Trump for his election as the new President of the United States,” Alvarez, President Rodrigo Duterte’s staunch ally in Congress, said in a statement.
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Alvarez said he hoped a Trump administration would renew the ties of the US with the Philippines, long strained after Duterte criticized the US for its atrocities during the pacification campaign in Mindanao.
“It is my hope that under a Trump administration, longstanding Philippine-American relations will continue to prosper on the basis of mutual trust and respect, mutual benefit, common adherence to democratic principles, and shared commitment to freedom, equality, justice and peace,” Alvarez said.
For his part, another Duterte ally Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles said he hoped the Philippines and US would help each other in the campaign against drugs and terrorism.
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Article continues after this advertisement“The people of the United States have spoken and their undeniable choice is Republican Donald Trump as their 45th President. While others say there is some degree of uncertainty as to what the future brings under a Trump presidency, I remain optimistic that Filipino-Americans will continue to play a very important role in America’s socio-political affairs,” Nograles said.
“Although I agree with President Duterte’s resolve to chart an independent foreign policy especially via-a-vis the United States, I wish that with newly-elected President Trump, the Philippines and the US will continue to work together as partners in progress and the war against illegal drugs, crime and terrorism,” he added.
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