MANILA – The military and the police assured their full loyalty to the Constitution and the chain of command, shrugging off calls for them to withdraw their support for President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
In a statement Monday, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said Filipino soldiers, pilots, and marines are dedicated to their mandate of safeguarding the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Philippines, regardless of "any political affiliations or individuals in authority."
"Our duty is to protect the Filipino people and uphold the rule of law, ensuring that peace and development will prevail throughout the nation. We will continue to fulfill these responsibilities with integrity, impartiality, and utmost dedication," the AFP spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. maintained that the military remains a very professional organization.
"This is not the first time na nanawagan sila na (they made this call that) we pull out our support to the President but our answer is always the same, that the AFP remains to be a professional organization. Very clear po yung mandate natin (our mandate is very clear), we will protect the Constitution and we will follow the duly constituted authorities," he said in a separate interview.
On Sunday night, Davao Del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez urged the AFP to withdraw its support from Marcos, claiming that such an act would allow the country to attain peace and stability.
The lawmaker made this call after noting the rising tensions between the Philippines and China over the West Philippine Sea.
Brawner also dismissed claims that the Philippines, under the Marcos administration, is causing tensions in these waters.
"Definitely we are not the ones causing tension in the West Philippine Sea, its the other way around. We are going on with our usual business, our fishermen, our fishing in our exclusive economic zone and the AFP and the Coast Guard are protecting our fishermen so that they are able to fish in our exclusive economic zone," he added.
Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said while it respects the freedom of expression, it does not want to be caught in the middle of these political statements.
In an interview with reporters, PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said they remain loyal to the Constitution and would stick to their mandate of maintaining peace and order.
"Let us spare yung uniformed personnel sa mga ganitong mga usaping political (Let us spare our uniformed personnel from these political matters)," she added.
Fajardo, meanwhile, said their legal officers were looking into whether the lawmaker's remarks could be considered seditious.
"We will see, we will monitor kung ano ang magiging sitwasyon in terms of peace and security pero sana nga ay meron naman tayong duly constituted authorities at respetuhin yung mga elected officials at so far wala naman basehan sa ngayon para mag-alis or magwithdraw tayo ng supporta sa duly constituted authorities at yan naman sana ay igalang ng lahat (what would be the situation in terms of peace and security because we have our duly constituted authorities. We respect our elected officials and so far, there is no basis for us to remove or withdraw support for duly constituted authorities. We hope everyone would respect that)," she added. (with Lloyd Caliwan/PNA)
