House leaders took note yesterday of the Aquino government's openness to joint oil and gas exploration initiative with China, saying that once it pushes through, it could spur the Philippines' economic development.

Assistant Majority Leader and Citizens' Battle Against Corruption (CIBAC) Party-list Representative Sherwin Tugna and House Deputy Majority Leader and Marikina City Representative Miro Quimbo said there is nothing wrong with the President's move to give in to China National Offshore Oil Corporation's (CNOOC's) offer to explore the resource-rich Recto Bank, which has potential reserves of about 3.4 trillion cubic feet of gas, and 440 million barrels of oil.

"I believe that the joint oil development will be legal, on the condition that the CNOOC recognize that Recto Bank is Philippine territory. Also, I understand that China National Offshore Oil Corporation is a private corporation and not state-sanctioned. If this is so, the more reason that the government has a legal ground to proceed with the joint exploration because it is merely dealing with a private Chinese corporation and not with a corporation that is the alter-ego of the Republic of China," Tugna said in an interview.

Quimbo, who earlier asked the Aquino government to consider the proposal made by Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Ma Keqing, said the serious discussions on the joint exploration should be jumpstarted, believing that the territorial row is "purely economic-based."

"I entirely support the position of the President that we be open to a joint exploration with other countries, including China. I likewise agree that we must insist on our sovereignty on the Recto Bank such that our laws will apply in case of dispute," he said.

"Parties need to forge ahead and get into an agreement on how to explore and exploit resources there for the joint benefit of the Philippines and China," he pointed out.

Iloilo Representative Jerry Tre?as, chairman of the House committee on good government and public accountability, also agreed with his colleagues, expressing his all-out support to the joint exploration of the Recto Bank in the West Philippine Sea.

"I support it. It can help the efforts of government for economic development," he said.

Agham Party-list Representative Angelo Palmones also threw his support to the Chief Executive's move, saying that "a joint exploration in the Recto Bank is far favorable than armed confrontation."

"But, there must be a clear parameter in terms of area of coverage and ROI," he stressed.

For his part, Akbayan Party-list Representative Walden Bello said, "The devil is in the details. And among the details should be Chinese recognition of Philippine sovereignty over Recto Bank, and our ability to ask our parties to join in the joint development of the area so we can access the best technologies."

While Zambales Representative Jun Omar Ebdane, whose province covers the disputed Scarborough Shoal and who earlier rejected the Chinese ambassador's proposal, said he is leaving up the decision to the Aquino government, adding that he would only adopt a wait-and -see attitude on the planned joint gas and oil exploration of the Recto Bank, which is off the coast of Palawan province.

"I'm sure the President has a plan and reason for an open exploration. Let's just see where this goes," he said.

On the other hand, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) yesterday declined to comment on reports that China has published a new official map that includes islands in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) as part of sovereign Chinese territory.

"We will ask our Embassy in Beijing to verify the reported official map of China, and the extent of its coverage in the South China Sea before making our comment on it," DFA Spokesperson Raul Hernandez said in a statement.

Last Friday, China's National Administration of Surveying, Mapping, and Geoinformation announced the release of the map that featured "more than 130 islands and islets in the South China Sea, most of which have not been featured on previous maps of China."

Zhou Beiyan, editor of the new Chinese maps, said the old official maps featured only the Spratlys, Paracels, and Macclesfield Bank in the disputed waters.

By comparison, the new vertical map makes clear the delineations of the South China Sea islands and "demonstrates their geographic relations to surrounding island countries as well as surrounding islands and islets."

The map's bottom-left corner features an illustration of the Diaoyu, or Senkaku, islands territories being claimed by China and Japan

China claims ownership of almost all of the resource-rich territories in the South China Sea, conflicting with the partial claims of the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, and Taiwan.