The Philippine National Police (PNP) will be sending its intelligence officials to the Chinese Embassy in Manila for enlightenment as to where it based its statement that public security in the country is worsening.

PNP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Randulf Tuaño said officials from the police’s Directorate for Intelligence were tasked to coordinate with the Chinese Embassy to get the basis of its statement posted over the weekend that crime situation in the Philippines is worsening, with increasing crimes targeting Chinese nationals.

“We will follow proper channels and procedures. We will get the exact details because of the instruction of the Chief PNP (Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez) is not to make a guess of what they feel and instead, coordinate with them to know their sentiments,” said Tuaño.

This is not the first time that the Chinese Embassy Manila warned its citizens about what it described as worsening public security in the Philippines, especially crimes involving Chinese nationals—the first was last month when it warned Chinese students.

But for the PNP, its down data disputes what the Chinese Embassy in Manila has been claiming.

Citing crime data figures, Tuaño said the focus on crimes actually went down from January to August this year compared to the same period last year.

From 26,969 incidents recorded from January to August last year, Tuaño said.

“Our crime situation in the Philippines is not worsening because based on our data, there is a 16.5 percent decrease,” said Tuaño.

In seeking a meeting with Chinese Embassy officials in Manila, PNP intelligence officials are expected to present not only the crime data showing the decline in focus crimes but crimes involving Chinese nationals.

And that data showed that there were 21 cases of kidnapping recorded from January to August this year— and all of them involved Chinese nationals, which means that both the victims and the perpetrators were Chinese nationals.