‘Soldiers not loyal to Duterte must resign’

MANILA, Philippines — Soldiers who are not loyal to President Duterte should resign, Army spokesman Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala said.

As Duterte is commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), it should follow that the loyalty of the troops should be with him.

“Your Armed Forces is professional and our loyalty will remain towards the chain of command. He (Duterte) being the commander-in-chief, our loyalty is towards him,” Zagala said in an interview over “The Chiefs” on Cignal TV’s One News aired late Wednesday.

Even if they have their own personal views, Zagala stressed members of the military should respect the President and follow orders under the chain of command.

“Now if we have soldiers who are not loyal to him, then you resign your position and you can talk all you want,” he said.

Zagala gave the statement amid talks of a possible coup against the President supposedly coming from the AFP and the Philippine National Police.

AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Edgard Arevalo earlier gave assurance that it will remain loyal to the flag and the Constitution.

Zagala echoed Arevalo’s statement, saying the President has nothing to worry about as the AFP remains a professional organization.

In the same interview, Zagala said the Army is hoping the mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program will be reimposed.

He said the ROTC program trains civilians for reserve forces to beef up the military in defense against external threats.

Zagala said all Filipinos who have undergone ROTC training are automatically included in the Army’s reserve force.

Asked if the military is ready in the event that the country goes to war with China, Zagala said: “I don’t want to state any external threat. Let’s make it general that if any state will come to attack us, we have treaties available but we should be able to stand on our own,” he said.

With the right direction, Zagala expressed confidence that the military will have a credible self-defense capability in the near future.