The Senate and DOJ move to separately study the impact of the withdrawal of the Philippines from its Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States should establish “the weightier reasons” for its abrogation, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said. 

“Dapat malalim ang dahilan. It should go beyond the denial of a US visa to a senator,” Recto said.

“Because what if the US restores the visa of my good friend Senator Bato, are we then going to reverse course, and press the stop button to the revocation process which, per reports, has been started?” he said. 

“Paano kung bukas sasabihin ng Amerika na restored na ang visa ni Bato, ano gagawin natin? Is that the remedial action we are seeking or are we motivated by reasons more profound?” Recto said.

Recto said if VFA will ever be scrapped by the Philippine side, then it should be because our complying with its terms has harmed the national interest. 

“Kung dapat mang ibasura ang VFA, kailangang ipakita na it has been unfavorable to us, that we are getting the short end of the bargain. Ibig sabihin, dehado ba tayo sa VFA at delikado ba ito sa ating bansa?” he said. 

“We must be able to separate the national interest from the personal. The national harm done by the VFA is an issue separate from the actions taken by the other government on a certain individual,” Recto said.

“Kaya mabuti itong gagawin nila Koko dito sa Senado at ng executive branch sa DOJ. This is a good forum for a cost-benefit analysis which is long overdue,” he said. 

“Personally, tingin ko mali ang ginawa ng Amerika kay Bato. BFF nila si Bato noon. Red carpet treatment sa FBI ‘yan. But our response should be commensurate,” Recto said.