The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) does not need to conduct a loyalty check among its military personnel amid a deepening rift between the two highest officials of the land, President Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte, stressing that its loyalty is to the Philippine flag and the Constitution.
This was pointed out on Tuesday, Nov. 26, by AFP spokesperson Col. Francel, saying that the military leadership knows every soldier will do the right thing, and this is to continue performing their mandate of securing the nation and the people.
“At this point, there is no need for loyalty checks,” Padilla said.
AFP Chief of Staff General Romeo Brawner Jr., according to Padilla, trusts that each soldier will perform their sworn duty accordingly, and remain professional. “Our loyalty is to the flag and to the Constitution, and we adhere to the chain of command,” Padilla stressed, referring to the hierarchical structure of ranks and positions in the military where each person reports to a superior with more authority.
Marcos earlier said that he will fight back against the assassination threat made by Duterte against him, his wife Liza Araneta-Marcos, and cousin House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
For the AFP, Padilla requested that the military be spared from politics as it is a non-partisan organization, following former president Rodrigo Duterte’s remarks that only the military can “correct” the “fractured governance” of Marcos.
“We act as a barometer in all of these issues,” Padilla said.
“As our Chief of Staff has already stated, our Armed Forces is united and professional. So, with all of these things, we respectfully request that we are shunned away from political issues.” (Martin Sadongdong)
