China rejected anew allegations that it has infiltrated the Philippines through sleeper cells disguised as leaders of various civic groups, which are purportedly controlled by the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) foreign influence network.

Beijing, through its embassy in Manila, said it was aware of the reports but strongly dismissed the allegations which it described as “baseless” and only “aimed at smearing China and its citizens.”

“We noticed this report. The Chinese government, as always, asks Chinese nationals overseas to abide by local laws and regulations,” the Chinese embassy in Manila said in a statement Saturday night.

“We firmly oppose any baseless accusation and speculation aimed at smearing China and Chinese citizens,” it added.

Reuters revealed on Friday that four Chinese nationals accused of espionage operations in the country donated cash and vehicles to a local government unit and two police forces, respectively.

Citing a tip from a National Bureau of Investigation senior official, Reuters named Wang Yongyi, Wu Junren, Cai Shaohuang and Chen Haitao as four of the five Chinese nationals detained in late January for allegedly gathering critical information such as images and maps of Philippine naval forces near the South China Sea.

According to the wire agency report, the four men were posing as leaders of civic groups overseen by CCP’s foreign influence network. They allegedly donated cash to the City of Tarlac, and 10 Chinese-made Sinski motorbikes, worth around $2,500, to the Manila city police.

The Chinese embassy in Manila, for its part, rejected the speculations about the donations, stressing that its nationals have been helping locals throughout the years.

“Over the past years, Chinese citizens have been helping the Filipino people through humanitarian donations and relief work, which are widely welcomed and warmly applauded by the locals,” it said.

The Philippine government, through the Department of Foreign Affairs, has expressed concern about the reported operations of foreign individuals conducting espionage in the country.

Al Jazeera report

In a statement in October last year, the DFA noted reports containing relevant information on alleged foreign covert operations in the Philippines.

“In accordance with its mandate to help protect national security, the department takes such reports seriously and is monitoring relevant developments in this regard,” the agency said.

The statement was a response to the Al Jazeera documentary on She Zhijiang, a self-proclaimed Chinese spy that implicated dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo in espionage activities for China in the country.

She, who is currently detained in Thailand for human trafficking, forced labor, and scam sites, alleged that Guo Hua Ping, the former local chief executive’s alleged real name, was in his dossier.

Guo has repeatedly denied the allegations in various hearings into the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators in Bamban, and her alleged ties with them.

Likewise, the former local chief executive insisted on her Filipino citizenship, a claim already debunked by the NBI through her fingerprints.

The NBI, upon the direction of the Senate Committee on Women, which is spearheading the investigation into Guo’s alleged link with POGO hubs in her town, confirmed last June that Guo’s fingerprints matched those of Guo Hua Ping, a woman who holds a Chinese passport.