An executive from the National Security Council said Tuesday that the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources was directed by the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea to gather proof and affidavits of allegedly Chinese fishermen's usage of cyanide in the Bajo de Masinloc or Scarborough Shoal.

"The NTF WPS has directed the BFAR to submit all evidence regarding the alleged cyanide poisoning to determine the facts," said NSC Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya to the Philippine News Agency.

Malaya earlier said that an investigation would be done by the government regarding the matter and that findings would be forwarded to the Department of Justice and the Office of the Solicitor General.

"We will investigate this report, and if validated, we can forward it to the DOJ and OSG because they are now taking steps to strengthen the case we are planning to file in any tribunal for environmental degradation," he said in a televised interview on Monday.

This follows after a BFAR key official said over the weekend that the Chinese fishermen are ‘intentionally’ using cyanide fishing in the area to prevent Filipino fishermen from entering the shoal.

"The Chinese fishermen use cyanide... These Chinese, they intentionally destroy Bajo de Masinloc to prevent Filipino fishing boats from fishing in the area," BFAR information officer Nazario Briguera said, citing reports from Filipino fishermen in the area.

He further noted that the alleged deliberate damaging of the shoal is “a clear case of illegal, unreported, and undocumented fishing.”

On Monday, China refuted the said claims, saying that the allegations against Chinese fishermen are “totally baseless and sheer fabrication,” adding that they have “indisputable sovereignty” over “Huangyan Dao,” and its adjacent waters.

“The Chinese Government attaches great importance to the protection of the ecological environment and conservation of fishery resources, and have taken resolute measures to crack down on any illegal fishing activities,” said China's Embassy in Manila.

It added: “Such continuous disinformation has led up to nothing but exacerbation of the maritime tensions and destabilization of bilateral relations. The groundless speculations, slanders and inconsistent statements of spokespersons of relevant Philippine agencies can only place their professionalism and credibility in doubt.”

An arbitral tribunal ruling issued on 12 July 2016, ruled in favor of the Philippines, wherein China’s claim, including the nine-dash line marking, was found invalid.