PANGASINAN, Philippines – Otso Diretso candidates Samira Gutoc and Florin Hilbay on Wednesday, April 24, said President Rodrigo Duterte should be as tough on China as he is on Canada.

Duterte warned on Tuesday, April 23, that if Canada does not take back its garbage, he will “declare war against them.”

“Canada has been a friend to immigrants kagaya ng Filipinos. Garbage is an issue, but the territories as well…are more important. He should employ his agressive language on China, so this posturing of his, sir, you target those who need it more, apply your political [power] against people who take our territories,” Gutoc said in a mix of English and Filipino during a sortie in Binmaley, Pangasinan, on Wednesday.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said legal issues are preventing their government from taking 1,300 tons of waste materials illegally shipped by Ontario-based company Chronic Incorporated to the Philippines in 2013.

Duterte even threatened to dump trucks load of garbage in front of the Canadian embassy in Manila.

Hilbay, a former solicitor general, said Duterte is once again making “outrageous statements,” such as the war threat against Canada, to distract people from real issues.

“This is consistent with his policy of distraction…ayaw niya mapag usapan yung issues tulad ng pagpasok ng Tsina, pagkuha ng ating trabaho, lupain, pagkain, pati na rin pagtaas ng presyo ng bilihin,” Hilbay said.

(He doesn’t want to talk about other issues such as the creeping invasion of China, the jobs, land, and food being taken away from Filipinos by Chinese nationals, as well the rising prices of commodities.)

Reelectionist senator Koko Pimentel said that Duterte’s threat of war against Canada is just “exaggeration.”

“‘Yung ‘declare war’ siyempre exaggeration ‘yan  (of course the ‘declare war’ statement is an exaggeration), but that means that Canada must seriously act on the waste they have dumped into our country because that issue has been pending for so long,” Pimentel said in a statement on Wednesday.

“No country, no matter how poor, should be treated as a dumping ground of the waste of rich countries. Bawal ‘yan (that’s prohibited) even under international law,” Pimentel added.  – Rappler.com