Senator Panfilo Lacson on Sunday expressed disappointment that the deep political divide in the country is drowning discussions on the West Philippine Sea and other issues of national importance.

Lacson said he hopes Filipinos would not allow the huge gap in political stance to keep the government from coming up with a united stand, especially on the West Philippine Sea issue.

The senator pointed out that while there are tens of millions of Filipinos who have their own opinions about important issues, only two groups are dominating the online conversation thread and mostly through the operation of “troll farms”—the so-called “DDS” and the “Yellows.”

The term “DDS” is associated with those who support the Duterte administration, while the “Yellows” or “Dilawan” refers to those who support the previous Aquino administration.

"We are a deeply divided nation. DDS and Yellows bicker about anything. Worse, they assume that everybody else is their proxy,” Lacson said in a post on Twitter.

“Right or wrong, either you’re with them or against them. Absolutely false! There are many of us who speak our own minds, not theirs,” he said.

“You say something the DDS consider unflattering, you get branded a Yellow, and vice-versa. The truth is, that is not the real situation. There are many Filipinos who have their own stand on the issue,” the senator elaborated in an interview on DZRH radio.

Lacson said it is high-time the larger segment of the population stop listening to the noises deliberately created by the “DDS” and “Yellows.”

“They should continue speaking their minds independently, especially in pursuit of our country's national interest," he said.

On the issue of the West Philippine Sea, Lacson said Filipinos should think of what they and future generations of Filipinos would lose if they allow the incursions by China to continue.

China, he noted, has already made at least three incursions into the Philippine’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ)—Scarborough Shoal, Panatag Shoal, and now Julian Felipe Reef.

“What is bad is that instead of having one voice, we bicker among ourselves. In the meantime, China just watches and even applauds,” Lacson said.

“We must make it clear to our fellow Filipinos what we stand to lose if we do allow the West Philippine Sea situation to continue,” he stressed.

“That should be the focus of the conversation, not petty bickering that will confuse our people,” the lawmaker reiterated.