ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider PBBM must condemn 'unprovoked' US attack on Venezuela, says Makabayan

PBBM must condemn 'unprovoked' US attack on Venezuela, says Makabayan

Published Jan 4, 2026 03:01 pm

At A Glance

  • The Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives is prodding President Marcos to make a clear stand against the United States' (US) attack on Venezuela.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. (left), US President Donald Trump (Facebook)
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. (left), US President Donald Trump (Facebook)


The Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives is prodding President Marcos to make a clear stand against the United States' (US) attack on Venezuela.
"We call on the Marcos administration to immediately issue a clear and unequivocal condemnation of US military aggression against Venezuela," militant solons ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio, Gabriela Party-list Rep. Sarah Elago, and Kabataan Party-list Rep. Renee Co said in joint statement Sunday, Jan. 4
"The Philippines must not remain silent in the face of this violation of international law and assault on a sovereign nation. Our government must stand on the side of peace, sovereignty, and the right of peoples to self-determination," they said.
"We urge the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to raise this matter in all appropriate international fora, including the United Nations (UN), ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), and the Non-Aligned Movement," the trio added.
According to them, the Philippines--a staunch ally of Washington since World War II--must join other nations in demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of all US military forces from Venezuelan territory.
"Furthermore, we call on progressive organizations, people's movements, and all Filipinos who value sovereignty and oppose imperialism to express solidarity with the Venezuelan people," they said.
The alliance between Manila and Washington remain tight under the administrations of President Marcos and US President Donald Trump.
The Makabayan bloc described Washington's military action as "unprovoked" and classically American.
"This unprovoked attack on Venezuelan territory represents yet another chapter in US imperialism's long history of violating the sovereignty of nations that refuse to submit to its diktat."
The militant lawmakers reckoned that "The parallels between Venezuela's situation and our own are unmistakable."
"The Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), and other military agreements have essentially transformed the Philippines into a forward operating base for US military operations in the Asia-Pacific region. These agreements compromise our sovereignty and drag us into conflicts not of our making, including potential military confrontations with China and other nations," they claimed.
Tinio, Elago, and Co then gave a grim warning to their countrymen.
"The US attack on Venezuela should serve as a stark warning to the Filipino people about the dangers of allowing our country to be used as a staging ground for US military adventurism. Today it is Venezuela; tomorrow it could be any nation that dares to chart an independent path or finds itself in the crosshairs of US geopolitical interests," they further said.
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.