Trillanes says Duterte's verbal attack shows he's in panic
'Si President Duterte ay nagpa-panic dahil malapit na mabunyag ang mga illegal na gawain ng kanilang pamilya,' says Senator Antonio Trillanes IV
Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said President Rodrigo Duterte's latest attack against him shows he is in panic over accusations that his son and son-in-law are allegedly involved in smuggling operations in the country.
"Si President Duterte ay nagpa-panic dahil malapit na mabunyag ang mga illegal na gawain ng kanilang pamilya. Kaya naman pala bilyon -bilyon ang pera nila sa bangko (President Duterte is in panic because we are close to revealing the illega activities of his family. This is why he has billions of pesos in the bank)," Trillanes said in a statement Sunday morning, September 3.
Duterte tagged Trillanes as "political ISIS" in a media interview in Davao City around midnight on Sunday. He compared his most vocal critics to terrorists for their dedication to their cause despite their ignorance.
The latest word war between the two was prompted by the senator's allegations against Duterte's son Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and son-in-law Manases Carpio over their alleged illegal activities at the Bureau of Customs.
"The bottom line is this, his son and son-in-law were named as the masterminds behind the Davao Group and are being suspected of being involved in smuggling operations that led to the express entry of the 6.4 billion peso shabu shipment into the country," Trillanes said.
"Those are not my allegations but information extracted from Sen. [Richard] Gordon's witnesses during the hearings" he added.
The witness who tagged Paolo and Manases recently changed tune, however. Still, Trillanes recalled that Paolo has been linked to smuggling in Davao as early as 2007, citing reports from the National Bureau of Investigation and the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group.
The Senate recently held its 6th hearing on the alleged smuggling of a P6.4-billion shabu shipment from China.
During the 6th Senate hearing on the issue, Trillanes traded barbs with administration ally Gordon, whom he claimed was being used to absolve the President and his family of allegations against them.
Trillanes wanted to invite Duterte's son and son-in-law to a Senate inquiry, but Gordon rejected the motion, dismissing his allegations as "hearsay."
But whether the Senate blue ribbon committee pushes through with its motion to invite both, Duterte advised his son and other invited resource persons to disregard Trillanes’ requests.
Duterte said those who will receive a subpoena for this Senate probe should say: "I will not submit. For what? You are on a fishing expedition."
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