By Muhammad Arshid
No one should have to believe a Defense Secretary’s word for his citizenship. That’s not because Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has been proven to be wrong. He has not. It’s due to the job he holds.
Who is Gibo Teodoro Jr. (Gilberto Teodoro)?
Teodoro has been in Philippine public service for decades. He is a lawyer and former congressman from Tarlac, and was once Secretary of National Defense (SND) of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. He subsequently ran in both the 2010 presidential and 2022 Senate elections but both were unsuccessful. He was appointed by then President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as Secretary of National Defense in 2023.
The record. This saga was broken open in July 2025 with the Manila Times reporting that Teodoro had a Maltese passport issued in December 2016 and valid up to December 2026. It was confirmed that day by the Defense Department. The Comelec, the Bureau of Immigration and the Commission on Appointments had been informed that he once possessed the passport and the citizenship of Malta, and that he had surrendered and renounced the same before he announced his candidacy for the Senate in October 2021. Like many Filipinos at the time seeking opportunities, Teodoro signed up as an investor with the Malta investor program, he said, as a private citizen.
The law. Holding a foreign passport, holding foreign citizenship and renouncing it are different things. Under Republic Act 9225, all dual citizens, who have taken an oath of allegiance and have renounced their foreign allegiance, are permitted to hold public office. If the department’s story is true, then there is a very little to write about, said a UP Diliman law teacher to Rappler.
The allegations. On June 18, 2026, four complainants led by lawyer Russel Miraflor asked the Pasay City prosecutor to investigate, and asked the Solicitor General to consider a quo warranto petition. They say that Teodoro has applied for or renewed a Philippine passport around the month of March 2017 when his Maltese passport was still valid and that his declarations seem to be contradictory of his application for the Philippines. No findings have been made, these are accusations. Miraflor admitted he does not have any certified copies and the department has said that the burden of proof lies with the accusers, which is just. In 2025, Comelec chairman stated that the citizenship of Teodoro may be presumed to be Filipino if there is no court ruling to the contrary, but that citizenship can be questioned anytime.
Reasons for caution. Miraflor’s former clients, who were allegedly bagmen of ex-lawmaker Arnie Teves, were named terrorists, Rappler reported. The complaint was filed days after China imposed sanctions on Teodoro. The AFP has issued a warning of possible foreign influence operations on Philippine officials, including Teodoro, but has not associated it with this complaint.
Reasons for answers. Motive is not evidence and silence is not.
First, the timeline. It was not until July 2025, two years into his tenure, that Teodoro officially recognized the passport, in light of its being reported by a newspaper. But it wasn’t clear when he regained Filipino citizenship and when he gave up the Maltese citizenship,” Rappler pointed out. He was issued with a verified and unverified Commission on Appointments intelligence dossier stating that he still has his Philippine citizenship, as Immigration certified him on September 29, 2021, to have a Philippine passport, which he acquired earlier. It suggested that 2017 be used for the passport and did not come to a conclusion. It is a fact that the Philippines considers naturalization overseas to be a means of losing one’s citizenship. So what happened with him from 2016 to 2021 and why did he have a Philippine passport?
Second, Malta. Malta allows for multiple citizenship and no one is compelled to renounce a citizenship. The renunciation requirement is Philippine and whatever is in the records of the Maltese authorities is relevant. When published, Rappler’s request to the citizenship agency of Malta was not answered.
Third, the promise. In 2025 Teodoro said that had the Manila Times asked him first, he would have shown all the evidence. I can’t find any report that a complete set of documents was published, or that there has been any public ruling by the prosecutor or the Solicitor General.
What makes this office unique. A Defense Secretary is responsible for war plans and sharing of intelligence and alliance commitments. I have no reason to doubt the military chief’s assertion that Teodoro is loyal and I have noted no indication to the contrary. However, there is a distinction between confidence and verification. Loyalty may be claimed, eligibility may be certified.
Secrecy is the ally of the wrong people. The best way to beat these bad guys is to feed them, and the quickest way to starve them is to answer this question. Rumours of Teodoro’s travels and his family’s passports swirl around on the internet, and I can’t possibly comment on them. If all is well, it’s free to release the papers.
What should happen. Teodoro can waive his rights to confidentiality and disclose the Immigration certification, his Oath and Sworn Renunciation, proof of delivery of the Malta passport and/or proof of the cancellation of his passport, the written confirmation of the recording of the renunciation by Malta, and his disclosures to the Comelec and the Commission on Appointments. The Pasay prosecutor and Solicitor General should make public what they will do.
In a democracy, the government doesn’t need to ask the public to trust it. They ought to give the public a run for its monies. Secretary Teodoro has said he can show the evidence. He should show it.
