MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito on Monday raised concerns over possible foreign propaganda and influence operations aimed at dividing Filipinos over the West Philippine Sea, after about 500 comments flooded his social media page within seven minutes of his statement against a Chinese ambassador.
Ejercito raised the concern during the Senate Finance Committee’s hearing on the proposed 2027 budget of the Department of National Defense (DND), asking Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. whether China could be using an online propaganda network to sow discord among Filipinos over the country’s territorial sovereignty.
“What is unfortunate is that some Filipinos appear to be siding with them. We should all be united on this issue,” Ejercito said.
He recalled that after he responded to Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan’s remarks on the West Philippine Sea, his social media page received hundreds of comments within minutes.
“I was practicing my Mandarin again. I had forgotten some of it since we graduated from Xavier a long time ago. Maybe he did not understand that the West Philippine Sea belongs to us, so I told him in Chinese that the West Philippine Sea is ours. And within seven minutes, there were already 500 comments,” Ejercito said.
The senator expressed concern that the sudden influx of comments could be part of a broader effort to divide Filipinos on an issue that should unite the country.
Teodoro affirmed that China conducts influence and propaganda activities as part of its broader strategy, citing the United Front Work as a pillar of the Chinese Communist Party.
“There really is such an effort. China itself acknowledges that it is part of the United Front Work, which is a pillar of its Communist Party,” Teodoro said, explaining that the initiative is a party activity and not merely a state undertaking.
Teodoro also distinguished the People’s Liberation Army from the armed forces of a sovereign state, describing it as an instrument of the Chinese Communist Party.
He said China’s foreign policy also involves operations intended to reinforce the legitimacy of its political system.
Teodoro warned that allowing Beijing’s narratives on disputed waters to go unchallenged could gradually normalize its maritime claims.
“If we do not stand firm against that narrative, it will become normalized. They will say we have accepted it because we remained silent. It is better to stand our ground than to lose what is ours by default,” he said.
