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MANILA - Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano only filed a single diplomatic protest against China, unlike his claim that the Philippines had filed between 50 to 100 in the last 2 years, a lawmaker claimed Monday.

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Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano said Manila only filed the protest on May 28, a Saturday, and the note verbale was "brought to the residence of the Ambassador of China."

Traditionally, he said the foreign envoy is summoned to the Department of Foreign Affairs "to emphasize the gravity of the situation."

"The implication is that we are being so considerate of China and well, in a way, we don’t want to offend them with our words and actions," Alejano told ANC's Headstart.

"What we want is for our government to be transparent in its action and by all means, any violation in our territory should be answered through corresponding protest because that is our record to show to the world that we are doing our own share," he added.

Even the range of "50 to 100" alleged protests signified that Cayetano "is not sure about the number of protests that we have filed so far," Alejano said.

"As per my information, and it went out already in the media, that he only filed 1 protest under his watch," he said.

Cayetano, during a briefing to members of the House of Representatives last week, said Manila has filed "several dozens" of protests, "maybe 50, 100."

He also clarified that protests come in many forms.

"People think that protest is a specific form. When the President [Duterte] tells (Chinese) President Xi [Jinping] 'That is mine and don't get the oil' ...That is a protest. When we file a note verbale, that is a protest. When we have a [bilateral consultation mechanism] and we list down everything, that's a protest. If we list down 10 things, then we protest 10 things," he told lawmakers.

"So I could go up to you now and say, Congressman, pasensya ka na but I disagree with you. That is a protest. If you were a different country, that was a diplomatic protest already."

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Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque has denied Alejano's claim, saying the Philippines has filed a protest "more than once" and the lawmaker "does not know what he's talking about."

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In the interview, Alejano said while he is not asking the government to announce every protest it makes, "grave issues should be announced to the public.

"So far, what happened after this quiet diplomacy, it emboldened China all the more. Did they stop doing the thing in South China Sea? They said that they will not militarize South China Sea, and they did that," he said.