MANILA, Philippines – Amid the repeated claims of President Rodrigo Duterte and his close aides of supposed threats against the administration, a lawmaker who was once part of a failed coup d’état said destabilization is definitely not in the works.

“Even if we’re criticized and told to just stage a coup d’état… we always opt for [legal processes] that we can avail of. We speak, we file an impeachment [complaint]. If that doesn’t work, we file a case before the International Criminal Court (ICC),” said Magdalo Representative and former Navy officer Gary Alejano in a press briefing on Tuesday, February 20.

Alejano was asked to react to Special Assistant to the President Bong Go’s insinuation that Duterte’s critics were plotting an “EDSA 3,” or a 3rd version of People Power.

Go made the allegation during a Senate probe into the selection of the Combat Management System (CMS) for the Philippine Navy’s frigates deal.

“We’re not [taking] the law into our own hands,” said the lawmaker, who was once part of a mutiny himself.

Magdalo was the name of a group of junior officers from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) who staged a coup d’état against then president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. The group, which counts Alejano and Senator Antonio Trillanes IV as two of its members, is now a political party comprised of both civilians and former soldiers.

Magdalo has also been among the most vocal critics of Duterte’s policies, particularly when it comes to his bloody war on drugs and how he has been handling China’s encroachment of the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

Alejano, who graduated from the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) in 1995, recalled that when he was younger, he rejected the thought of joining any uprisings. Years later, he was part of not one, but two mutinies.

But he insisted he still believes in making the most of existing remedies to address alleged wrongdoing in government.

“I don’t agree when he says ‘stage a coup d’état’ if you don’t like how this government is being run. I don’t think you should challenge people like that. Don’t underestimate the Filipino people. We don’t want to come to that point,” added Alejano.

Alejano in 2017 filed an impeachment case against the President, which was swiftly rejected by the Duterte-allied House.

“He’s not capable of accepting criticism in his administration,” added Alejano, noting that it’s been the habit of the Duterte administration to link dissenting voices to either “fake news” or “destabilization.”  – Rappler.com