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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Army chief approves court martial proceedings for colonel who 'withdrew support' from Marcos

Army chief approves court martial proceedings for colonel who 'withdrew support' from Marcos

Published Feb 16, 2026 11:28 am  |  Updated Feb 16, 2026 02:15 pm
Colonel Audie Mongao (Photo: Philippine Army)
Colonel Audie Mongao (Photo: Philippine Army)
Colonel Audie Mongao, a Philippine Army (PA) official who posted on social media his supposed withdrawal of support from President Marcos Jr., will face a general court martial (GCM), a senior military official revealed on Monday, Feb. 16.
Lt. Gen. Antonio Nafarette, PA commanding general, said he already approved general court martial proceedings to try Mongao for alleged violation of Articles of War 63 which penalizes “disrespect toward the President, Vice-President, Congress of the Philippines, or Secretary of National Defense.”
Article of War 63 states that any officer who uses contemptuous or disrespectful words against the President, Vice-President, the Congress of the Philippines, or Secretary of National Defense, “shall be dismissed from the service or suffer such other punishment as a court-martial may direct.”
Mongao was earlier relieved as commander of the Training Support Group under the PA’s Training Command (TRACOM).
“Right now, the investigation of TRACOM has been completed and he’s already here for the GCM, the general court martial,” Nafarrete told reporters in a press conference at Fort Bonifacio in Taguig City.
“We are already preparing for it. We will still hold a meeting for the composition [of the GCM]. But I already signed a document on the composition and will be [finalized] soon,” he added.
The Army chief explained that a probable cause was established during the course of the investigation of the TRACOM, which is why the convening of a GCM was necessary.
Last January 9, the Army confirmed that Mongao had been relieved from his duties after he allegedly posted a statement online indicating his withdrawal of personal support from President Marcos, amid ongoing issues of corruption in the government.
The post allegedly read: “I, Col. Audie A. Mongao, am withdrawing my personal support to our President and Commander-in-Chief, Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos, Jr! Enough is enough! The Filipino people are worth fighting for.”
Mongao, who apparently was on a New Year’s break when he made the post, immediately surrendered to the TRACOM for an investigation.
Mongao has been in the uniformed service for 34 years.
It remains a mystery why Mongao posted his withdrawal of support from Marcos on social media but the TRACOM suspected it may have something to do with his career advancement.
Maj. Gen. Michael G. Logico, commander of TRACOM and Mongao’s immediate supervisor, said Mongao, considered a senior officer in the Army, has been passed over for career advancement twice already and this reality could have weighed heavily on him.
Loss of confidence
Nafarrete said Mongao later deleted his social media post but the TRACOM was able to validate it after he admitted to posting such statement.
“Yes, the statement was his, and he admittedly said that he posted that,” the top Army official shared.
According to Nafarrete, Mongao’s statement amounted to disrespect toward the President, who is also the military’s Commander-in-Chief.
“He did his statement disrespecting the President [while] he is still part of the organization, and what he did amounts to loss of confidence. He has to face this investigation [as part of] due process,” Nafarrete said.
When asked about Mongao’s motive for posting the statement, Nafarrete said it would be up to the court martial to hear it.
“It’s best for him to tell it to the court martial,” the Army chief said.

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Philippine Army Colonel Audie Mongao withdrawal of support President Marcos Lt. Gen. Antonio Nafarrete
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