THE Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Friday expressed concern over possible infiltration attempts that could disrupt peaceful protests, including reports of individuals allegedly planning to use grenades.
Meawnhile, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., dismissed calls from a “handful of retired military officials” to support their destabilization move as part of disinformation propaganda.
AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said intelligence information has reached both the AFP and the Philippine National Police (PNP) about potential agitators who could take advantage of upcoming rallies.
He called on the rally organizers to ensure that no one slips into their groups.
“We call on the organizers to secure and police their ranks to make sure there are no infiltrators because there are reports that have reached us,” Brawner told reporters in a chance interview at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.
“There are infiltrators who will explode grenades… that’s fearsome. Our peace-loving fellowmen might be hurt. So, we are asking the organizers to make sure their rally will be safe, peaceful, safe, peaceful. We assure them we will be there to assist them,” he added.
The Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) will hold its so-called “Rally for Transparency and A Better Democracy” at the Rizal Park in Manila from Nov. 16 to 18. The United People’s Initiative (UPI) will also hold its own protest action at the EDSA People Power Monument in Quezon City on the same dates.
Despite the concerns, Brawner stressed that the AFP still views the rallies as peaceful gatherings and does not consider the situation alarming.
“For November 16 to 18, theAFP is ready to support the PNP to maintain peace and order,” Brawner said.
He downplayed however, possibilities that violence could erupt. “ As far as we are concerned, these are peaceful rallies. I hope they turn out peaceful because that was what the organizers promised us,” he added.
“That’s a function, really, of information operations. There will be all these agitations. We have to learn to live with it, and we have to learn to ignore it,” Teodoro told reporters in a separate interview.
“Actually, they are very few. The bulk of the retired officials, they do not speak for all retired officials. That’s why even naming them as speaking for retired officials is unfair to the majority of retired officials. They’re retired people; they have their own take on things, but if it is really a violation of the law, then they have to account for it. But this is not the vast majority of retired officials. So, let’s not glorify these people and putting them in a place where they shouldn’t be regarded by the public,” Teodoro explained.
Teodoro noted that while some issues must be resolved politically, these do not always affect the military or the police.
“There’s no worry from our side because we know it’s a function of information,” the Defense chief said.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is investigating whether an active-duty soldier is involved in an alleged plot to destabilize the Marcos Jr. administration.
Brawner said military intelligence community is currently validating a list of purported government and retired military officials linked to the rumors, which were earlier shared on social media by columnist Ramon Tulfo.
“The intelligence community has not reported to me, but they are already doing their investigation, especially on sa active members ng AFP. Doon po sa listahan kasi ay may isa na nakalagay doon. We are looing at the list because we want to make sure no active member ng AFP who will be involved in any of these unconstitutional activities,” Brawner said.
Tulfo’s alleged destabilization list forwarded to AFP intel team: Malacañang Brawner stressed that the military takes rumors of destabilization efforts seriously.
The AFP chief reiterated that the military remains focused on its constitutional mandate, notably internal security operations, humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR), and territorial defense.
He also rejected calls urging soldiers to join protests and back a coup d’etat, emphasizing that the AFP will not participate in any unconstitutional activity.
