Malacanang said on Thursday that the reported presence in the Philippines of some 3,000 members of China's People's Liberation Army is being validated.

This was after Senator Panfilo Lacson, former head of the Philippine National Police (PNP), said he received information from a source that 2,000 to 3,000 Chinese soldiers are in the country on "immersion missions" and they allegedly managed to enter the country as tourists or as workers in the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations.

"I'm sure the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) is already validating that given that it is being reported by no less than a senator of the Republic," said Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo in a press briefing.

Asked if the alleged presence of Chinese soldiers in the country a cause for alarm, he said, "We are always alarmed with respect to national interest issue."

Panelo also denied that President Rodrigo Duterte has been "too soft" on China amid the problems related to POGOs in the country.

"The President is never soft on anything that relates to the national interest. He's a very decisive President," he said.

Panelo was reacting to Senator Richard Gordon, who blamed the Duterte administration's soft stance why illegal activities related to POGOs have been happening.

Those activities include kidnapping, human trafficking, bribery, murder, and money laundering, among others.

"Any malpractice, any corruption, any irregularity relative to any activity or project in this government are always being investigated. And after the findings, the President will act, as always, decisively," said Panelo, also the chief presidential legal counsel.

Asked of Duterte's position on POGOs, he said, "Since it's still operating, he has not yet said that he is against it (POGO)."

He said that from the information he got, the government was able to generate P17 billion revenue from POGOs in the last three years.

"Prior to this, we were only receiving about P57 million on online gambling. In other words, it's a huge source of income for this government where it can be used to all kinds of projects," he said.

Panelo also recalled that Duterte mentioned the increase on the salary of government nurses could be sourced from POGO revenue.

"If there is anything wrong with the system on POGO, then we have to review it, evaluate it and then streamline it, improve it. And all the agencies involved must do their job, so that any corruption, any unlawful acts can be either neutralized or completely stopped," he said.

Meanwhile, asked if the Palace shared the statement of the Chinese Embassy that the alleged illegal practices involving Chinese nationals were isolated, Panelo said, "I do not know whether they are isolated or not. We have to record those incidents if it's really isolated." Celerina Monte/DMS