Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said Tuesday that his department had “ground to suspect” that some elected officials under the Philippine government were supported by China and were in favor of the expansion of the country in the West Philippine Sea.

Even with the assertion, he clarified that they did not necessarily have any evidence that could sufficiently prove that the suspicions had basis.

“We have some ground to perhaps suspect it, but credible information in respect to evidence is kind of hard to ad-use particularly as…we do not have access to bank deposits,” Teodoro explained during a budget hearing.

The Department of National Defense (DND) executive said that investigations into the allegations could be better conducted through financial authorities, noting that syndicated activity in foreign countries were resolved with tax fraud investigations.

Teodoro further mentioned that their actions on such issues were limited to coordinating with other law enforcement agencies.

“Our problem really is how much of this is admissible at the end of the day, that’s what counts, and we’re not prepared to make any statement on that score,” he stated.

Questions regarding the issue were asked by Akbayan Partylist Rep. Dadah Ismula, who initially referenced reports that there were some government workers who had leaked official documents from the country to the Chinese Communist Party.

Detailing matters related to the issue, Teodoro said that the leak was carried out through emails wherein individuals were posing as “think tanks.”

Due to the lack of measures to circumvent such measures, the security personnel were able to get some information–none of which was said to be sensitive in nature.

Even with the additional security measures imposed, Teodoro expressed that they could not ensure that there would be no “repeat” of such a breach.

A way that Ismula proposed to address the issue was to provide government workers with better benefits through sufficient pay, such as increased compensation for those directly faced with hazardous situations.

Offering a different solution to the matter, Teodoro urged the government to look to implement measures that would safeguard themselves and their families from the dangers of the work that they conduct.

“I really don’t have the solution to the problem, but it is something that we must tackle…the bull by the horns,” he said.

Under the proposed national budget, the DND was allocated with P324.632 billion, which was distributed through different allocations such as P112.50 billion for Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses, P179.45 billion for Personnel Services, and P32.67 billion for Capital Outlay.