THE House of Representatives (HRep) will send a delegation to the 10th Parliamentary Intelligence-Security Forum (PISF), a leading international security forum, to increase understanding of global threats and create actionable solutions to counter these threats.
Deputy Speakers Antonio “Tonypet”Albano of Isabela and Raymond Democrito Mendoza of the TUCP Partylist will head the delegation to the Dec. 4 and 5 forum in Washington, D.C.
In the pre-departure briefing held last Wednesday, HRep Inter-Parliamentary and Public Affairs Department (IPAD) Deputy Secretary General Grace Andres said this is the third time during the 19th Congress that HRep was invited to send a delegation to the annual PISF.
She added the Philippines is also scheduled to host PISF for the first time next year. It will be held on Feb. 3 and 4 in Manila.
The annual PISF is a “vital platform bringing together policymakers, experts, and practitioners to share insights, address challenges, and collaborate strategies that enhance our collective security, (and) more so, with the assumption of a new administration in the US by President Trump in January 2025.”
“It is therefore both an honor and a privilege to gather with all of you today as we hear from our experts discuss critical issues and challenges that will shape our national security and intelligence landscape,” Andres said.
Albano stressed the importance of the annual PISF in maintaining regional order.
“We really need to build and ramp up the alliance between our two countries and all countries that are in line with our efforts to bring regional security here in the West Philippine Sea. I’m more determined to be part of this delegation as it not only concerns the national security of the Philippines but the security of our regional area as well,” he said.
Albano highlighted the country’s cooperation with the United States is an important aspect, noting that the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) has already been already expanded to his province.
He also thanked the House leadership for putting a neophyte lawmaker like him under the wing of Mendoza, who he described as one of the brilliant deputy speakers of Congress.
Department of Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Asia Pacific Affairs (ASPAC) Aileen Mendiola Rau said, “Asia is at the forefront and center of the global economy, having the largest market and the most number of people among the continents. Asia also boasts of the highest economic output in the world. Asia indeed has an outsized influence and effect on the future trajectory of the world, may it be economically, politically or issues of strategic importance.”
PISF topics of concern range from cybersecurity, trade-based money laundering, illicit finance, human trafficking, 5G and cryptocurrencies.
HRep Deputy Secretary General Dr. Romulo Emmanuel Miral Jr. of the Congressional Policy and Budget Research Department, Inter-Parliamentary Relations and Special Affairs Bureau Deputy Executive Director Rosemarie Santos, Director Atty. Mertha Gracilla Sandoval of the Office of the Speaker and Department of Information and Communications Technology Cyber Security Bureau Director Rodil Aniban, among others, also attended the hybrid meeting.
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