MANILA - Opposition Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Tuesday shrugged off rumors that he is plotting a coup d’etat to remove President Duterte from office.

"Hindi mo na kailangang mag-coup sa goberynong ito. Nagsasarili naman, they are self destructing eh," he said in an interview. [You don't need a coup in this government. They are doing it on their own, they are self destructing.]

Trillanes, a former Navy officer, led rebel soldiers that seized the upscale Oakwood Hotel in Makati in 2003, demanding the ouster of former President Gloria Arroyo. In November 2007, Trillanes led an assault of the Peninsula Hotel, also in Makati. Both coup attempts were foiled by the administration.

A week before the May 9, 2016 elections, the soldier-turned-lawmaker accused Duterte of keeping millions of pesos in undeclared wealth.

Trillanes is also currently giving protection to Edgar Matobato, a confessed hitman who linked Duterte to vigilante killings in Davao City, where he ruled as mayor for over two decades.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Monday said it is "looking seriously" into reports of a plot to topple the Duterte government.

AFP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla, however, guaranteed that soldiers remain loyal to their Commander-in-Chief, who has previously promised additional hospital buildings for soldiers, improved release of their pensions and education stipend for their children.

-- With a report from Adrian Ayalin, ABS-CBN News