Fresh into the new year, Malacanang Palace publicised a major decision by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr to effectively purge key members of the Duterte family from the country’s most sensitive decision-making body. Both vice-president Sara Duterte-Carpio and former president Rodrigo Duterte were removed from the country’s National Security Council under an executive order signed on December 30.
The government justified the decision based on the need to guarantee that the council “remains a resilient national security institution, capable of adapting to evolving challenges and opportunities”. Amid escalating tensions between the Duterte and Marcos families, the government said the shake-up would “ensure that its council members uphold and protect national security and sovereignty”.
Philippine National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano defended the move by emphasising Marcos Jnr’s prerogative to determine the council’s composition and highlighting “the need for timely and coherent action to address current and emerging threats to national security”.
Far from a routine bureaucratic reshuffle, Marcos Jnr’s latest move underscores the growing sense of urgency within the Philippine government, including fears of a coup by pro-Duterte elements. While Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio has made apparent threats of assassination against Marcos Jnr, her father has called on the military to intervene in civilian politics.
However, there is also a bigger geopolitical calculus at play, especially with the Dutertes favouring warmer ties with China in contrast to the West-friendly incumbent. The Marcos Jnr administration has purged the most influential pro-Beijing voices from the country’s top decision-making body in anticipation of sensitive and high-stakes strategic engagement with the second Trump administration.
The Philippines’ National Security Council is the pre-eminent body in charge of coordinating the country’s responses to domestic and external security threats. The council not only included relevant members of the executive branch but also representatives from other branches of the government, as well as former presidents.
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