US congressmen to monitor Mindanao

Five members of the United States Congress, including two members of the appropriations committee, are in town to meet with their counterparts as well as the American soldiers in Mindanao.

With the US Congress on recess, the bipartisan delegation led by Texas Rep. Silvestre Reyes arrived last Thursday and would be leaving today.

The US Embassy said the delegation will call on senior government officials and meet with their counterparts in the Philippine Congress, lay a wreath at the American Cemetery to honor American and Filipinos who died in World War II, and travel to Zamboanga to meet with local leaders and visit American soldiers.   

Accompanying Reyes are Representives Rodney P. Frelinghuysen of New Jersey, Heather Wilson of New Mexico, Gregory Meeks of New York, and  C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger of Maryland.

Frelinghuysen and Ruppersberger are members of the House committee on appropriations.

Reyes described the delegation’s visit as “a welcome opportunity for my colleagues and myself to travel to the Philippines to see, first hand, the close cooperation between our two countries on several fronts.” 

“We look forward to meeting with a number of senior officials from the Philippine government as well as our counterparts in the Philippine Congress,” he said. 

“We hope to learn more about the many strong aspects of the US-Philippines relationship, and to talk about ways that we can make our relations even stronger.”

While in Zamboanga City, they would meet with a small contingent of US troops who are training Filipino soldiers in counter-insurgency and intelligence gathering, he added.

Reyes said that they also want “to express our thanks for the warm and continuing welcome that we receive from the people of that city and region.”      – Marvin Sy