Marcos: No ‘loyalty check’ needed for military, police

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Monday dismissed allegations of loyalty checks among military officials and police personnel amid reports of a political rift between his administration and Vice President Sara Duterte's camp.

In an ambush interview with reporters at Malacañan Palace, Marcos emphasized that the country’s political climate remains “stable.”

“The government is just functioning properly. Although there’s a lot of noise — that’s all it is, it’s all just noise,” he said.

The issue of loyalty checks resurfaced after Marcos presided over a security command conference at Camp Crame, Quezon City, on 12 December, during which a lockdown was imposed.

“Hindi ko naiintindihan ang term na 'yan (I don’t understand that) because I don't know how you conduct a loyalty check. At least not... when you call a command conference… Because in the military, the police, we don't have that,” he lamented.

“Wala kaming ganoon (we don’t do that). I only hear it in the media. So I was just wondering, how do you define a loyalty check? Anyway, it's just a stupid question,” he pressed on.

Last week, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson BGen. Jean Fajardo clarified that the command conference presided over by Marcos “was not a loyalty check” but the third meeting of the National Peace and Order Council for the year.

“There is no need to conduct a loyalty check because time and again, we say that the PNP will remain loyal to the Constitution and to our duly constituted authorities,” Fajardo said.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), meanwhile, reiterated its apolitical and non-partisan stance amid political tensions.

AFP Chief General Romeo Brawner Jr. assured that the military’s professionalism remains intact despite the ongoing political turmoil within the government.