MANILA, Philippines — There is “no grumbling” in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) amid a perceived worsening rift between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte.
Lt. Gen. Jimmy Larida, AFP deputy chief of staff, made this assurance when he faced the Commission on Appointments’ (CA) Committee on National Defense for his confirmation.
The CA on Wednesday tackled the nomination of 22 senior AFP officers.
Senate President Jinggoy Estrada asked Larida whether there were any “grumblings in the military because of the recent events.”
To which Larida replied, “Hundred percent none, Sir.”
“You have to be loyal to the Constitution, correct?” Estrada asked again.
Larida answered, “Yes, sir.”
Malacanang on Tuesday slammed former president Rodrigo Duterte for urging the military to overthrow the President.
In a strongly worded statement, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said the former president had a selfish motive for calling on the AFP to “overthrow a sitting president” so that his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, could ascend to power.
“And he will go to great and evil lengths, such as insulting our professional armed forces by asking them to betray their oath, for his plan to succeed,” the statement read.
In a social media post on Saturday, the Vice President addressed concerns about her safety. She claimed that she already hired someone to kill Mr. Marcos if something bad happens to her.
In Filipino, Duterte said, “Do not worry about my security because I already talked to someone. I told him, ‘If I get killed, you kill BBM (Bongbong Marcos), Liza Araneta, and Martin Romualdez, [That’s] No joke. no joke. I already made the instruction. ‘If I die, don’t stop until you kill them.’ And he said, ‘Yes.'”
The Presidential Security Command, in a statement, said, “Pursuant to the directive of the Executive Secretary, the Presidential Security Command has heightened and strengthened its security protocols.”
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