Government validating reported presence of Chinese PLA in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — The government intelligence community is verifying reports that thousands of members of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) have entered the country on still unknown missions, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. said yesterday.

“All I can say is that we’re still validating,” Esperon said.

It was Sen. Panfilo Lacson, chairman of the Senate committee on national defense and security, who disclosed earlier this week that there could be anywhere between 2,000 to 3,000 PLA personnel in the country apparently on “immersion missions” and for other unknown purposes.

The senator said he obtained the information from a source whom he described as fairly reliable based on the information the latter had given him in the past.

His statement, however, drew a response from the Chinese embassy which asked via its Twitter account on Thursday: “Is the senator testing the intelligence of the Philippine people?”

Lacson shot back yesterday, saying, “It is a test all right, not of the intelligence of the Filipino people but a test and a challenge as well to our intelligence community to verify what I said, a yet-to-be validated information provided by a reliable source who had given me some accurate intelligence reports in the past.”

He said in intelligence parlance, the information may be classified “A6” or “considering the implications, it is one piece of information still worth looking into.”

The PLA is China’s armed forces and is considered the world’s largest military force.

Sen. Richard Gordon said he believes China has the largest intelligence-gathering apparatus in the world.

Gordon has not discounted the possibility of Chinese government agents infiltrating the country as he noted that a majority of Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) workers are military age males.

He said it was natural for any self-respecting country to have their military officers assigned in their embassies declared to host countries and also have agents under unofficial cover.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año yesterday said an investigation has been ordered over the supposed entry of the PLA in the country.

‘Charge AMLC  with negligence’

Meanwhile, officials of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) and those from other concerned agencies may be charged criminally for their failure to stem the entry of over $633 million in cold cash into the country in the last several months that was laundered and has funded illegal activities, Gordon said yesterday.

Gordon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, issued the statement after his panel started on Thursday the inquiry on the influx of cash dollars brought in suitcases by Filipino and Chinese nationals and its link to the proliferation of POGOs and the surge in vice crimes such as prostitution.

“At the very least, the AMLC (officials) must be charged with negligence, along those with other agencies that abetted this (entry of dollars),” he said.

The head of the Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group (PNP-Asegroup) at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport asked the Manila International Airport Authority to provide CCTV footage to identify the alleged police personnel or person who assisted passengers that brought large amounts of money believed to be for POGOs.

PNP-Asegroup director Crizaldo Nieves said there are many police assigned at the airport terminals, from customs police, airport police, to the PNP.

“I challenge anyone to identify the police who are involved, and the best way to identify the person is through the CCTV of the Manila International Airport Authority,” Nieves said. – With Romina Cabrera, Edu Punay, Rudy Santos