Marcos looks forward to working closely with POTUS

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos joined other world leaders in congratulating US President Donald Trump on his inauguration, saying he is looking forward to working closely with the Trump administration, particularly in maintaining stability and economic prosperity in the region.

The 78-year-old Trump took his oath of office under the US Capitol Rotunda on Monday as frigid weather forced the ceremony indoors.

“Congratulations to POTUS @realdonaldtrump and to the American people on another peaceful transfer of power in their nation’s nearly 250-year history. I look forward to working closely with you and your administration,” Marcos said on X.

“The strong and lasting Phl-US alliance will continue to uphold our shared vision of prosperity and security in the region,” he said.

Trump is just the second president in US history to return to power after being voted out, after Grover Cleveland in 1893.

Malacañang had said Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez would represent Marcos at Trump’s inauguration.

In a previous statement, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Cesar Chavez said the US invited the chiefs of diplomatic missions to represent their respective countries at Trump’s inauguration.

Trump, who served as US president from 2017 to 2021, earned a fresh mandate from the Americans after defeating former US vice president Kamala Harris in the 2024 elections.

A week before Trump’s inauguration, Marcos held a trilateral phone call with former US president Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru, where they emphasized the need to sustain the gains made in their first trilateral summit last year.

The three leaders agreed “to enhance and deepen trilateral ties, particularly in the areas of economic, maritime and technology cooperation,” the PCO said in a statement on Jan. 13.

In a separate readout on Jan. 13, the White House said Biden spoke with the leaders of the Philippines and Japan “to advance our continuing cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.”

CIBAC Party-List Rep. Bro. Eddie Villanueva also congratulated Trump on his inauguration as US president.

“It is indeed refreshing and inspiring to see a leader, who acknowledges God’s sovereignty, occupying the most powerful position in America, if not in the world,” he said in a statement. “We have nothing for President Trump but wholehearted prayers that God would grant him wisdom, strength and guidance as he embarks on this significant role,” Villanueva said.

In particular, the CIBAC lawmaker welcomed Trump’s policy pronouncement that his administration will only recognize male and female as officials genders.

“President Trump’s policy of recognizing male and female as the only genders will re-establish order in American society and families, which have been confused and destroyed by woke ideologies,” Villanueva maintained.

“It will save the lives of many young people who are being deceived into ‘transitioning’ to opposite genders through the lies being peddled in schools and in the media,” he added.

Wake up call

But House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro and former ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio said Trump’s foreign policy would have serious repercussions on Philippine security.

“Trump’s recent statements about taking over Greenland and the Panama Canal, coupled with his refusal to rule out military force, should serve as a wake-up call for the Philippine government,” Castro said.

“The expanded US military presence through EDCA poses a clear and present danger to our national sovereignty and regional stability,” she added.

“President Marcos Jr.’s expansion of EDCA sites to nine locations in 2023 has effectively transformed our country into a forward operating base for US military operations,” Castro also pointed out.

“We cannot allow our country to become collateral damage in the growing rivalry between the US and China. The Philippines must chart its own course toward genuine independence and peace in the region,” Castro said.

The same scenario was raised by Tinio. “The Philippines must not allow itself to become a staging ground for US military adventurism in the Asia-Pacific region,” he said.

“The presence of US troops and advanced weapons systems like the Typhon missile launcher only increases the risk of the Philippines being drawn into conflicts between major powers,” Tinio said.

Meanwhile, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) is pushing for the creation of an inter-agency body that would synchronize efforts among government agencies, civil society and other organizations assisting the hundreds of thousands of undocumented Filipinos in the US now in danger of being deported under a Trump administration. — Jose Rodel Clapano, Mayen Jaymalin