Issuing Executive Order (EO) 81 reorganizing the National Security Council (NSC) to exclude both Vice President Sara Duterte and former president Rodrigo Duterte was ill-advised, according to former chief presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo.

With the reorganization of the NSC, the Vice President as well as the former Presidents were removed as members.

There are three living former presidents: Joseph Estrada, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, and Rodrigo Duterte, the Vice President’s father.

According to Panelo, the removal of Vice President Duterte from the NSC was an “ill-advised presidential move.”

“It smacks of dirty politics, another brazen measure to diminish the political star power of VP Sara,” he said.

Since last year, the relationship between Marcos and Duterte has been on the rocks since the latter left the Cabinet.

In November 2024, Duterte “threatened” to have Marcos, the First Lady, and the Speaker of the House assassinated, should she herself be killed. At the time, the Office of the Vice President was being investigated for the alleged misuse of confidential funds.

Panelo said the removal of the former presidents from the NSC was the administration’s way of “deodorizing the elimination of VP Sara as a member.”

“The removal of FPGMA and FPErap from the NSC is to deodorize the elimination of VP Sara as a member — to make it appear that she was not being targeted,” he said.

National Security Adviser Eduardo Año and Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin defended EO 81, saying the composition of the NSC had always been subject to the authority of the President.

For his part, Bersamin said the EO was issued to “reorganize and streamline the membership of the NSC.”

VP not relevant

He said the Vice President was not considered relevant to the responsibilities of membership in the NSC at the moment.

He said that under the EO, the President has the power to add members or advisers to the NSC as needed.

Currently, the NSC is composed of the President as chairperson, the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Senate President Pro-Tempore; three deputy speakers to be designated by the Speaker, the majority floor leaders of the Senate and the House, the minority floor leaders of the Senate and of the House, with the chairpersons of the Senate committees on foreign relations, on national defense and security, peace, unification and reconciliation, and on public order and dangerous drugs as members.

The chairpersons of House committees on foreign affairs, national defense and security, and public order and safety; the Executive Secretary, the National Security Adviser; the secretaries of foreign affairs, justice, national defense, of the interior and local government, and labor and employment; the Chief Presidential Legal Counsel, the head of the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office and other government officials and private citizens appointed by the President will also be part of the council.

The NSC was established on 1 July 1950 through EO 330 under the Quirino administration. It was later reorganized under EO 115, series of 1986.

Its mandate is to act as the primary advisory body for coordinating and integrating plans and policies related to national security.

The NSC is comprised of two distinct bodies — the Council Proper and the National Security Council Secretariat.

Within presidential powers

Reconstituting the NSC is within President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s authority to enhance the formulation of policies affecting national security, Año underlined.

“The NSC is, first and foremost, an advisory body to the President, and its composition is always subject to the authority of the President,” he said.

Año, who is also NSC director general, said the Administrative Code of 1987 vests the Chief Executive with the continuing authority to reorganize the administrative structure of the Office of the President which the agency is a part of.

“Moreover, Section 17, Article VII of the Constitution vests in the President the power of control over all executive departments, bureaus and offices,” he added.

Año also pointed out that previous chief executives had reorganized the NSC to meet their requirements and the changing conditions.

“Since the NSC was established by President Elpidio Quirino in 1950, it has undergone several reorganizations. President Ferdinand E. Marcos reorganized the NSC under EO 396 in 1972. President Corazon Aquino reorganized the NSC under EO 115 in 1986 and EO 292 in 1987. President Fidel V. Ramos reorganized the NSC under EO 33 in 1992, while President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo reorganized the NSC under EO 34 in 2001,” he said.