Malacañang said no loyalty check is needed among the police and the military as President Marcos is confident that the government just followed the law when former president Rodrigo Duterte was surrendered to the International Criminal Court (ICC) early this week.

Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said this amid claims that there were police officers who quit their jobs in support of the former president.

In a press briefing on Friday, March 14, Castro reiterated the statement of the Philippine National Police (PNP) that there was no truth that police officers have resigned due to Duterte's arrest.

"Kung ito man po ay may kaugnayan sa pag-surrender ng gobyerno kay dating pangulong Duterte sa ICC through the Interpol, wala pong nagre-resign (If it is related to the government surrendering former president Duterte to the ICC through Interpol, nobody resigned because of that)," she said.

Despite this, Castro said there was no need for the government to conduct a loyalty check among the ranks of the law enforcers.

"Wala po dahil kampante po ang Pangulo na ang ginawa naman po ng administrasyon ay naaayon sa batas (There's no need for a loyalty check because the President is confident that what the administration did was legal)," she said.

Meanwhile, Castro said these reports were just another attempt for the former president to gain the public's sympathy.

"Sa atin pong paningin, ang pagkakalat po ng mga ganitong klaseng kwento ay para po mas lumaki ang simpatya sa dating pangulong Duterte (For us, the spread of these kinds of stories is intended to increase sympathy for former President Duterte)," she said.

The Palace official appealed to the public to not forget the root of the issue.

"Sabi nga po natin ang mga taumbayan sana po imulat niyo ang inyong mga mata. Tingnan niyo po kung ano ba talaga yung katotohanan (As we have said, the people should open their eyes and see the truth)," Castro said.

"'Wag nating iwan yung issue ng extrajudicial killings. Meron pong mga namatay. Meron pong mga nagrereklamo. At ang mga nagrereklamong ay noon pa pong 2017, hindi po ito sa panahon ni Pangulong Marcos (Let's not ignore the issue of EJKs. People died and there were complaints. And these complaints were made in 2017, not during the current administration)," she added.