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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider AFP validating reports of presence of 3,000 Chinese PLA members in PH

AFP validating reports of presence of 3,000 Chinese PLA members in PH

Published Mar 5, 2020 12:00 am
By Aaron Recuenco The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is now validating reports that thousands of Chinese soldiers are currently staying in the country to gather intelligence information. Armed Forces of the Philippines-Eastern Mindanao Command (AFP-EastMinCom) Commander Lt. Gen. Felimon Santos Jr. (AFP-EastMinCom / MANILA BULLETIN) AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Felimon Santos Jr. (AFP-EastMinCom / MANILA BULLETIN) "We are in the process of validating the report of Senator (Panfilo) Lacson, that being a matter of serious concern," AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Felimon Santos Jr. said. Lacson, a former chief of the Philippine National Police, earlier said more or less 3,000 members of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) are currently in the country, and urged the intelligence community to validate the report that reached him. "I have my staff for intelligence to confirm said reports in coordination with other relevant agencies of government," Santos said. A military source, however, said that Lacson's figure could be exaggerated. "Any country that will undertake a foreign intel ops will not deploy that so much number of operatives. That is very dangerous because that large number of operatives will lead to very high risk of compromise," said the source. "Besides, if they want info from us, they will leverage their advantage in cyber warfare/hacking, which is less exposure and personal risks on their part, than deploying that large number of operatives." The issue of espionage cropped up again after police seized PLA identification cards from suspects arrested for the killing of a Philippine offshore gaming operation (POGO) worker in Makati City. In addition, reports that hundreds of millions of dollars of dirty money are being smuggled in the country from China were recently revealed by Sen. Richard Gordon. These raised speculations that some POGO workers are actually spies.
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