The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) raised alarms over a forged letter circulating online under the fake signature of Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., attributing the disinformation campaign to foreign covert operations.
The fraudulent document, dated July 31, contained false assertions regarding maritime law enforcement in the West Philippine Sea, local political affairs, and defense alliances. Officials at the Department of National Defense (DND) immediately labeled the letter as “obviously and absolutely false and fake” and referred the matter to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for a formal probe.
Speaking on the intelligence assessment, AFP spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad explained that military indicators link the scheme to state-backed actors. “Sa military, we look at indicators, and indicators will point na ito ay galaw ng Chinese Communist Party or yung kanilang mga galamay na minsan may kasamang Pilipino doon,” Trinidad said.
Trinidad highlighted that the ultimate objective behind dispersing such fraudulent documents is to create domestic division and weaken international partnerships. “We don’t have to look far. Sino ba ang may makinabang kapag lumabas ito at nag-away-away ang Pilipino at nasira ang reputasyon ng ating SND at na-discredit ang alliance with the US? Kaninong interest ang ma-advance nito? Yung interest ng Chinese Communist Party,” he added.
The DND reiterated that the incident forms part of a broader foreign malign influence operation intended to undermine public trust and diminish the government’s efforts to defend Philippine sovereignty.