19 October 2017•Update: 19 October 2017
By Hader Glang
ZAMBOANGA CITY
The political parties of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and Russian President Vladimir Putin have signed an agreement formalizing friendly ties between the two countries' ruling parties.
The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel, Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) president, and Sergei Zheleznyak, the Russian ruling party's Deputy Secretary General in St Petersburg, Russia, on Tuesday, October 17, 2017.
“This is a historic moment, as it brings Russia and the Philippines closer together through relations between their ruling parties, and not just their governments,” Pimentel said in a press statement to the local media here on Wednesday.
Senator Pimentel is in Russia for the 137th International Parliamentary Union Assembly talks with leaders of United Russia, the ruling party of the Russian Federation and is backed by Putin.
According to him, the PDP-Laban is open to building ties with political parties in other countries that share its “commitment to change for the welfare of the people.”
President Duterte has initiated relations with Russia and China as part of his administration’s independent foreign policy following his announcement in May to separate from the U.S. and UN who voiced concerns over extra-judicial killings and human rights violations in Philippines as a result of his bloody war on drugs.
“PDP Laban is unique among political parties in the Philippines not just for its active grassroots presence and ideological discipline, but also for its efforts to boost diplomatic ties through relations with ruling parties of other countries,” Pimentel said.
The party is open to building ties with political parties in other countries that share its commitment to change for the welfare of the people, he emphasized.
“We want to share our experiences with parties from other countries, and we want to learn from their experiences as well. The Change we push is not change for the sake of change, but rather, it is aimed at eradicating age-old problems and must therefore be sustainable.”
The accord between the two parties is the second memorandum with a foreign political party signed by Pimentel for PDP-Laban, the first one being the agreement with the Communist Party of China signed in February.
