President Duterte, upset over Canada’s inordinate delay in taking its garbage back, has ordered government agencies to look for a private shipping company to bring them back to their country of origin.
Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo made the statement after Canada failed to meet the May 15 deadline to take back the trash they shipped to the country in 2013.
In an urgent press briefing in Malacañang, Panelo said that Duterte is upset about Canada’s “inordinate delay” in shipping back its garbage.
“We are extremely disappointed with Canada’s neither-here-nor-there pronouncements on the matter. Obviously, Canada is not taking this issue nor our country seriously,” he said.
“The Filipino people are gravely insulted about Canada treating this country as a dumpsite,” he added.
As a result of the delay, Panelo said Duterte has instructed appropriate government offices to look for a private shipping company which would bring back Canada’s trash to its jurisdiction.
The Palace official added the government will shoulder all expenses and will leave it in Canadian waters if the North American country would refuse to take it back.
“The government of the Philippines will shoulder all expenses and we do not mind,” Panelo said despite being unable to determine where to get the fund for this.
“If Canada will not accept the trash, we will leave the same within their territorial waters or 12 nautical miles out to sea from the baseline of any of their country’s shores,” he added.
Panelo said the shipping will be done “immediately,” stressing that the Filipinos will not allow themselves to be treated like a dump site.
“The President’s stand is principled as it is uncompromising. The Philippines is an independent, sovereign nation, must not be treated as trash by other foreign nations. We hope this message resonates well with other countries of the world,” he said. (Argyll Geducos)
