MANILA – Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff General Romeo Brawner Jr. lambasted a misleading report from alleged Chinese intelligence agents posing as journalists.
In a video from the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Teodoro said the people claiming to be “journalists” asked him if the Philippines is a proxy of the United States at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.
“Nung ako tinanong, nakipagsagutan ako ng matagal dahil tinanong nila sa akin kung tayo daw ay proxy lang daw ng America. Sabi ko ‘hindi, hindi tayo proxy.’ Natural Pilipino tayo, pero sila magnanakaw ng teritoryo, e ‘di nagsagutan na kami ng nang sagutan. Hindi pa nilalabas yun pero baliktarin na naman nila,” Teodoro said.
“Imbis na magpadala sila ng defense minister, nagpapadala sila ng mga bata na nagpapanggap na journalist na ahente ng intelligence nila na nagtatanong ng balagbag tapos binabaliktad ang video,” he added.
“Yung mga yan, hindi iyan mga journalist kaya tama lang na iniwasan ni (Chief of Staff). Ako akala ko tunay na journalist. Nakipagsagutan ako dahil Pilipino, naagrabyado yung mga Pilipinas, natural sasagutin ko,” he further said.
Brawner, for his part, stated that he did not answer any queries of supposed journalists as he was proceeding to a bilateral meeting.
“Later on, naglabas sila sa WeChat, binaliktad nila ang story na umiiwas daw tayo sa mga tanong nila about West Philippine Sea at yung ang paratang nila na tayo ang na-filtrate o tayo ang nag-encroach, pumapasok, dun sa teritoryo nila,” Brawner said.
Meanwhile, in a separate statement, the AFP said the supposed journalists “violated protocol” by trailing Brawner and “pressing for comments outside formal sessions.”
“They captured selective footage and twisted it into a misleading narrative titled “Philippine military chief dodges questions,” the AFP said. “The AFP and DND remain committed to truth, professionalism, and defending the Philippines against foreign propaganda.”/PN
