MANILA — Lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc at the House of Representatives are calling for a House probe into the alleged secret campaign by the United States military to discredit China’s Sinovac inoculation in the Philippines at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was reported by Reuters.

They filed House Resolution 1773 on Wednesday urging the lower chamber to conduct an investigation in aid of legislation, as they called the report “highly concerning”.

If the report is true, Kabataan Party List Representative Raoul Manuel said the Pentagon’s campaign is unacceptable.

“Kahindik-hindik ang ganoong ginawa…Pagpapakita rin ‘yun kung ano talaga ang tingin ng US military sa mamamayang Pilipino. Para sa kaniya ang Pilipinas ay parang pawn lamang. We are mere pawns sa kaniyang agenda na i-counter ang China bilang kaniyang competitor as a global superpower," he said.

"Ang paggamit ng ganung psychological operations to influence domestic policy during a health crisis is really unacceptable and manipulative," he added.

Gabriela party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas said US officials should be made to answer the allegations.

“Gagawin talaga ng US lahat ng paraan para gamitin ang health crisis para sa kanilang kapakanan, para sa kanilang interes, laban sa kanilang ka-kompetensya tulad ng Tsina. Parang labanan ng indebtedness talaga ito…Dapat maging senyales ito sa Marcos Jr. administration na pag-isipan ang diplomatic relations sa US,” she said.

According to the Reuters report, "The U.S. military launched a clandestine program amid the COVID crisis to discredit China’s Sinovac inoculation – payback for Beijing’s efforts to blame Washington for the pandemic. One target: the Filipino public."

"At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. military launched a secret campaign to counter what it perceived as China’s growing influence in the Philippines, a nation hit especially hard by the deadly virus," it added.

Sought for comment, the Philippine Department of Health said: "the findings by Reuters deserve to be investigated and heard by the appropriate authorities of the involved countries."