The government has sent a ship near Escoda Shoal as a replacement of the BRP Teresa Magbanua, National Maritime Council (NMC) spokesman Alexander Lopez said on Saturday.

“As we speak right now, iyong inalisan ng [BRP] Teresa Magbanua, ay mayroon tayong pinadala, hindi ko lang sasabihin kung ito ay isang coast guard vessel o ito ay Philippine Navy vessel,” Lopez said in a news forum in Quezon City.

“Iyong agam-agam ng ating mga kababayan, bakit walang kapalit, mayroon tayong kapalit at—again, sabi nga habang nag-uusap tayo dito, na andoon na sa bandang lugar ng Sabina Shoal ang ating pinadala na sinasabi nating kapalit,” he added.

Lopez though did not elaborate further on the matter, citing security reasons.

Lopez said the Philippines will maintain its presence over Escoda Shoal (Sabina Shoal) to continuously assert the country’s sovereign rights and jurisdiction, and monitor illegal activities in the area.

Lopez also announced that the Philippine government is planning to lease maritime vessels from other countries. But he said the plan has to be studied carefully due to a number of concerns.

Some of the concerns, he said, are the number of vessels needed for deployment in the area, kind of vessels that should be leased, and availability of funds.

Should the government push through with the lease, Lopez said the vessels  should be military grade and form part of the modernization program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). | PND