The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Tuesday strongly reiterated its commitment against engaging in any “military junta” activity, maintaining the institution will not support extra-constitutional shortcuts.
AFP spokesperson Margareth Padilla clarified the military’s long-standing position following renewed speculation.
“Our AFP Chief of Staff General Romeo Brawner Jr. has already clarified this multiple times that there is no such thing as a military junta within the AFP,” Padilla said in a briefing.
The issue resurfaced after Senate Pro Tempore Ping Lacson said Sunday that he had received an offer from retired military personnel to join a “civil-military junta” aimed at removing President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte from office. Lacson said he ignored the offer.
“There are a lot of people with wild ideas,” Lacson said at the time, attributing the sentiment to frustrations over perceived corruption.
Padilla cited that the individuals involved in the alleged junta are retired officials, suggesting the matter should be examined by other agencies. However, she affirmed the AFP would cooperate if its role was needed, focusing primarily on national security implications.
“In AFP, there is no room in the republic for extra-constitutional shortcuts whatsoever,” Padilla stressed. “It’s not like a video game that we can restart. So I would go back to that premise that there is no restart plot within the AFP.”
In other developments, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla reaffirmed Tuesday that circulating rumors about the formation of a civilian-military junta are baseless.
“Not happening,” Remulla said, stressing that the government maintains full visibility over individuals attempting to recruit personalities for an “alternative government.”
Remulla noted that similar destabilization efforts have appeared repeatedly throughout the country’s history, requiring vigilance but not “unnecessary alarm.”
“It is always a point of concern, but it’s not a point of panic,” he said.
The Interior Secretary assured the public that security and intelligence units are closely monitoring the situation. He identified those involved in exploratory discussions as mostly retired or “semi-active” political personalities. Recruiters, he added, were offering “everything from position, to power, to money.”