Not entirely propaganda.

The article makes many legitimate points, particularly on the very conservative and limited training process in the PLA and the emphasis on loyalty rather than competence in promotions. It would be worth adding that the PLA is one of the most corrupt institutions in one of the most corrupt societies on the planet. How that will affect their ability to fight a war remains, of course, to be seen. I would agree with the author that too much of the talk on the subject of capacity focuses on hardware (even that is largely an unknown quantity) and ignores the human factor.

All of this of course is an unsettling picture for the Philippine armed forces: if China ever does decide to stage a war, it will want a short one with a sure victory, the proverbial "splendid little war", and that points directly to the Philippines. The most likely scenario would be the seizure of some islands and the sinking of some ships. The average Filipino would be unaffected, of course, but not an attractive prospect if you're in the Philippine Navy.