Roxas downplays 'rivalry' with Binay on diplomatic front

Former senator Manuel Roxas II on Tuesday brushed off speculations that he is engaged in a rivalry of sorts with Vice President Jejomar Binay, this time on the diplomatic front. Roxas lost to Binay in last year’s vice-presidential race. He has since filed a protest before the Presidential Electoral Tribunal. On Tuesday, Roxas insisted he is merely doing the job assigned to him by President Benigno Simeon Aquino III when he went to Taiwan on Monday to mend Philippine-Taiwan relations after the deportation of 14 Taiwanese citizens earlier this month. Binay, on the other hand, went to China on Friday last week in an attempt to stop the execution of three Filipinos sentenced to death for drug trafficking there. When asked if a rivalry existed between them, Roxas said on dzXL radion on Tuesday, “Naku e halong pulitika, intriga na yan. Ginagawa lang natin ang trabaho natin dito na mabantayan ang interest ng ating OFW (overseas Filipino workers)." (Oh, that’s just politicking, that’s just intrigue. I am just doing my job, for the sake of Filipinos working in Taiwan.) Diplomatic missions Aquino had tasked Roxas to go to Taiwan on Monday to smooth out tensions stemming from Manila’s deportation of 14 Taiwanese to Mainland China last Feb. 2. Taiwan had tightened the procedures for Filipino workers heading for Taipei in retaliation for the deportation, which it said violated its sovereignty. The Philippines observes the One-China Policy where it maintains diplomatic ties with Beijing, which views Taiwan as a province. However, the Philippines also maintains economic ties with Taipei. Last week, Aquino tasked Binay to head a Philippine delegation to China to head off the execution of the three Filipinos suspected of drug trafficking. The delegation led by Binay managed to convince China to stay the execution of the three Filipinos. When asked if he feels pressured to come up with a better performance than Binay, Roxas said his only goal is to uphold the interests of Filipinos in Taiwan. “Maganda ang ating layunin dito, mabantayan ang interest ng OFW. Utos ng pangulo ito at ginagawa natin ang lahat para mabantayan ang kapakanan ng ating kababayan," he said. (Our intention here is good, to uphold the interests of OFWs. The president has given me his orders and I am doing everything to make sure our countrymen’s interests are upheld.) Rivalry? While Roxas lost in last year’s elections, he is perceived to still be engaged in a "rivalry" with Binay in Malacañang. Roxas heads the “Balay" faction that supported Aquino’s presidential bid in 2010. Binay was supported by the “Samar" faction that campaigned for an Aquino-Binay tandem. – VVP, GMA News