China a threat?

China is not a threat – that is according to Malacañang. From the narratives of the President during the past few months, it is safe to say that the Philippines and China have already developed a sense of congeniality bounded by economic diplomacy over politico-military security.

On the other hand, the voice of pluralists contend against the efficacy of too much closeness with China.

In fact, citizen and netizens are beginning to notice the increasing number of young Chinese men and women filling up condominium units, at times over 70 percent are rented by them. With this, the offensive of China mainland from petty peddlers to shop owners to information technology and of course, to financial capital.

If China is not a threat, I don’t know how this rhetoric explains the activities and happenings from the Chinese from low to high-profile locations. Other Chinese companies are expected to be involved in land reclamation and development of various sectors such as in industry and electronics, industry parts, infrastructure and construction.

In connection with this, the Philippines will be joining for the first time the Rim of the Pacific Exercise, the world’s largest international maritime war games to be held in Hawaii next month. This move by the Philippines is not necessarily a big deal with China. China does not care. They see the Philippines as a state still so they will probably respect our share in RIMPAC same way they join military drills. But it does not follow that the US can alter the reality of China moves in the South China Sea. – JUMEL G. ESTRAÑERO, bluebaby_lemuj@yahoo.com