Sen. Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito wore a T-shirt bearing the words “West Philippine Sea” alongside Chinese characters he said meant “the West Philippine Sea is ours,” in a message directed at Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan.

Speaking on DZRH’s Executive Session on Saturday, Ejercito said he had the Chinese characters added to the shirt so the ambassador could understand the message.

“Baka kasi hindi pa maintindihan ng Chinese Ambassador [Jing Quan] kung ano ibig sabihin ng West Philippine Sea kaya in Chinese character natin ginawa. Sana mabasa niya ito,” Ejercito said.

The senator also criticized Jing’s remarks about China’s relationship with the Philippines, saying the ambassador should exercise diplomacy and help strengthen ties between the two countries.

“Kailangan you strengthen to improve the ties between the two countries. Yung bansa at syempre yung bansa kung saan ka na-istasyon,” Ejercito said.

“Ito masyadong aggressive, masyadong hostile,” he added.

On Friday, Jing said the Philippines should feel “fortunate” to have China as a neighbor, adding that Beijing could easily win if it chose to use force but would instead pursue peace.

“We should feel fortunate enough that you have a neighbor like China in this region. You know, if we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not choose to use force. We love peace,” Jing said.