DND chief assures military will not participate in any coup plot

From the Philippine News Agency (Feb 12): DND chief assures military will not participate in any coup plot

Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Voltaire Gazmin on Thursday assured that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will not participate in any destabilization plot amid the public outrage on the Mamasapano incident that killed 44 Special Action Force (SAF) commandos.

“We are very confident the military will not be involved in the coup,” Gazmin said at the resumption of the Senate inquiry into the encounter on Jan. 25.

Gazmin, however, said they received raw reports, when asked by Senator Miriam Santiago that certain groups are planning a coup d’etat.

“Your honor, we indeed received reports. We are in the process of verifying and confirming. As far as a coup is concerned, it will entail military support,” Gazmin said.

Despite pressure from the media, Santiago did not name names but said among the plotters is a rich man “known to have funded similar coup d’etat in the past.”

Santiago clarified that she is against any unlawful means to unseat President Benigno S. Aquino III.

”No matter how strongly I will criticize the President, I will say that I am definitely against a coup d’etat,” Santiago said.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=735107