Aguinaldo State Dining Room, Malacañan
July 27, 2016

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte convened the members of the National Security Council (NSC) in Malacañang to discuss policies and current national security concerns including the implications of the recent ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration on the West Philippine Sea, the peace and development roadmap and updates on the campaign against illegal drugs.

Four of the past Philippine presidents were present, namely Benigno Simeon Aquino III, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Joseph Ejercito Estrada and Fidel Valdez Ramos.

Several high-ranking officials of the current administration were also in attendance including Vice President and Housing and Urban Development (HUDCC) Chairperson Maria Leonor Robredo, newly elected Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, Senate Majority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, Sen. Gregorio Honasan II, Sen. Loren Legarda, House of Representatives Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, Executive Sec. Salvador Medialdea, Interior and Local Government Sec. Ismael Sueño, Presidential Communications Sec. Martin Andanar, Justice Sec. Vitaliano Aguirre II, Finance Sec. Carlos Dominguez III, Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon, Solicitor General Jose Calida, Labor and Employment Sec. Silvestre Bello III, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella, Special Assistant to the President Christopher Lawrence Go and other members of the President’s Cabinet.

Representatives from the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Philippine National Police (PNP), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) were also present at the NSC meeting that lasted for about five hours.

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