Solon wants Trump banned for remarks against Philippines

MANILA, Philippines –  A lawmaker has called on the House of Representatives to bar United States presidential candidate Donald Trump from entering the country for his recent remarks against the Philippines.

In his House Resolution No.43, Albay Rep. Jose "Joey" Salceda said he seeks to ban Trump from entering the country for being “inimical to the national interest.”  He said the Republican presidential candidate's recent tirade against immigrants, which included the Philippines among “terror nations” is unreasonable.

“Whereas, there is no feasible basis or reasonable justification to the wholesale labeling of Filipinos as coming from a 'terrorist state' or that they will be a Trojan horse,” Salceda said in his resolution.

Last Friday (Philippine time), Trump likened immigration to a Trojan horse, out of which terrorists would spring out and destroy America. He warned the US to be cautious of immigrants - if they follow the legal process in securing citizenship.

Salceda also cited an Agence France-Presse report that Trump warned that immigrants, including those from the Philippines, could form a potential pool of recruitment for “Islamist terror groups.”

The lawmaker said that as a major political party presidential candidate of the most powerful country in the world, Trump’s “remarks have had widespread dissemination, thus aggravating the shame it has already put Filipinos and Filipino Muslims, including Filipino migrants and overseas Filipino workers who this House and our society have recognized as modern heroes of our country.”

Salceda also cited that Trump has been a beneficiary of the Filipino hospitality through “the patronage of his joint property project called Trump Tower at Century City with 56 stories worth P6 billion now fully sold from which he has earned handsomely.”

Salceda also said he is concerned that Trump’s pronouncement had demonstrated “negative, dysfunctionally nativist, aggressively adversarial attitude towards immigrants in the USA. where he aspires to be the leader.” He said the candidate’s attitude may affect the four million Filipinos in the US.

To support his resolution, Salceda cited  Memorandum Order No. ADD-01-005 dated March 29, 2001 issued by the Bureau of Immigration and Deportation which list grounds to exclude and deny foreign nationals entry into the Philippines.

“While Donald J. Trump has clearly generated impressions not conducive to public good and has shown disrespect or makes offensive utterances to the Filipino people. Be it resolved, as it is hereby resolved, that the Bureau of Immigration and Deportation refuse Donald J. Trump, be permanently refused entry into the Philippines,” the House resolution read.

Congressional resolutions, passed to express the "sense" or position of a house, are not binding. 

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