PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte will convene the National Security Council on Monday at Malacañang to discuss “matters that have recently emerged as challenges to the nation’s security.”
National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said that Duterte will follow through on the agreements “reached during the NSC Council Proper meetings on July 27, 2016 and Dec. 12, 2016.”
During the first NSC, Duterte discussed the Philippines’ next steps on vital issues, including the peace process, the war against illegal drugs, and the country’s arbitration court victory over China with regard to the West Philippine Sea.
The NSC is a collegial body chaired by the President and composed of select members from the legislative and executive branches of government. The membership includes the Senate President and House Speaker, as well as the Executive Secretary and specific members of the Cabinet.
The NSC is mandated to discuss and review national security issues and concerns, the results of which are considered by the President in executing his duties, Esperon added.
The President heads the NSC, which is composed of around 35 leader-members from the executive and legislative branches of government, including past Presidents of the Republic, Vice President Leni Robredo, Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, the majority and minority leaders of both houses of Congress, the chairs of Senate and House committees involved in national security concerns, and various members of the Cabinet.