Gibo says smear campaign behind Malta passport story

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July 15, 2025 | 3:08pm

MANILA, Philippines — Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said he was warned last week that his now-renounced Maltese passport would surface as a controversy, calling it "not just fake news but a smear campaign."

Teodoro said in a radio interview on Tuesday, July 15, that he was told that someone was "raising the issue" about his foreign citizenship, but he had brushed this off as he was no longer a dual citizen.

"Now that I'm thinking about it, how it was done was very comprehensive because it was planted in a newspaper known for criticizing our policies against China," Teodoro said in a mix of English and Filipino, in an interview with DZRH. "I keep thinking about these white papers... Whatever this is, it’s all connected." 

The Manila Times reported Monday that Teodoro held a Maltese passport issued Dec. 22, 2016, making him a dual citizen. 

The Department of National Defense clarified on the same day that Teodoro's Maltese passport was surrendered and renounced before he filed his 2021 senatorial candidacy.

Targeted attack

Teodoro suggested the story was deliberately planted in a publication "known to criticize our policies against China" with the expectation that pro-China groups would amplify the controversy.

"It was known that this would be picked up by the pro-China [side]. And they would have a field day with it."

The defense secretary said the publication failed to seek his side before running the story.

"If they had asked me beforehand, I would have explained and shown them all the evidence," Teodoro said.

Teodoro acquired Maltese citizenship through the country's citizenship-by-investment program, which requires a minimum contribution of €600,000 to the Maltese government, Teodoro confirmed during the interview. 

The DND chief said he obtained the passport in 2016 as a private citizen to ease his travel between the Philippines and Europe.

"It’s difficult if you’re constantly renewing your visa," he added.

"Just like other Filipinos at the time, I was also looking for opportunities. That’s why I joined this investor program. Then the pandemic happened, plans changed, and I decided to run [for office], so I surrendered [the citizenship/passport] through both the Philippine and the Maltese process," Teodoro said.

Attempt to remove from office

Teodoro connected the passport controversy to previous "white papers" questioning his actions and policies as DND chief and suggested there was a coordinated effort to remove him from office.

"I think this won't stop because if what was told to me about there being orchestrators is true, this won't stop," he said.

When asked if the goal was to remove him from his position, Teodoro replied: "I think so, because I've been hearing that for days now."

"In the final calculation, I serve at the pleasure of the president.. If he thinks what I’m doing is right, good. If he thinks I’m a liability, then that’s just how it is. A courtesy resignation isn’t even necessary, because all of us serve at the pleasure of the president," he added.

Teodoro is a known vocal critic of China's maritime behavior in the South China Sea.

At the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore in June, Teodoro dismissed questions from Chinese military officials as "propaganda spiels disguised as questions" and accused Beijing of sending intelligence agents posing as journalists.