MANILA, Philippines - Militant group Bayan on Tuesday accused the Aquino administration of taking a legal short cut by approving the access agreement with the United States government, allowing greater access of US troops to military and other facilities in the country.
Bayan Secretary-General Renato Reyes, Jr. said the government will be bypassing the Philippine Senate if it grants the US access agreement.
"The Aquino government wants to take legal short cuts, bypass the Senate and fast-track the implementation of the access agreement," Reyes said in a statement.
He also noted that the pending approval of the Philippine-US access agreement will violate the Philippine Charter, which prohibits the permanent basing of foreign armed forces.
"It violates the Constitutional ban on foreign basing. The country would be reduced to one giant weapons depot for US forces. The country would be used as a staging ground for US intervention such as drone strikes in other parts of the world," Reyes said.
He claimed that the access agreement will usher in the return of the US bases in the country that would allow US forces to station more troops on a rotational basis and preposition weapons and equipment in Philippine facilities.
"When the Philippine government speaks of rotational US troops, these are in fact permanent and continuing military deployments. US troops, even if by different batches, can be stationed in Clark or Subic for an indefinite period of time. When one batch leaves, another comes in to replace them. They will be there all the time. That is permanent,†Reyes said.
Earlier, Presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said the government welcomes the access agreement with the US, as it does not only for the defense of its territories but a great help in the country's humanitarian and disaster response operations.