The government should consider filing a petition asking the Supreme Court to recognize the 2016 Hague ruling so that no president would be able to amend the historic victory of the Philippines against China in the future. Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero made the suggestion on Thursday, August 3, in light of the Senate’s adoption of Senate Resolution No. 79 which urges the government to take appropriate actions against China for its incursions in the West Philippine Sea. Among the courses of actions the Senate included in the resolution is to for the government to raise the issue to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and other international bodies. “The Constitution is part of the law of the land. The Constitution says all decisions, final and executory decisions of the Court, whether it be the higher or lower court, shall form part of the law of the land,” Escudero said. “Bahagi ng magiging batas natin ‘yan, bagamat di pinasa ng Kongreso. Hindi na pwedeng baguhin o balikan pa. So bakit hindi nating gawin yan habang ginagawa pa natin ang ibang bagay pa na sinusulong (That would become part of our laws, even though Congress did not pass that. That could not be altered or revisited. So why don’t we do that while we are also pushing for other options),” the lawmaker said. Escudero said the Solicitor General (SolGen) should initiate the filing of the petition on recognition of “foreign judgment” before the Supreme Court. “The recognition of foreign judgment should be led by the Solicitor General as an official lawyer of the government,” he said. “Kung may pasya ang Korte Suprema na kinikilala ang arbitral ruling dito sa ating bansa, yan ay magiging bahagi ng batas ng Pilipinas (If the SC recognizes the arbitral ruling here in our country, that will become a part of the law of the Philippines),” the senator stressed. According to Escudero, he wouldn’t have signed the Senate resolution on the West Philippine Sea if the senators insisted on bringing the issue to the UNGA. The senator also said he has already discussed this proposal to Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III and Sen. Risa Hontiveros before the approval of the resolution last Tuesday, Aug. 1. “They said they are open to all options. And that it’s no longer limited to merely the filing of resolution for approval by the UNGA,” Escudero said.