Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV shows a copy of his plunder complaint files at the Department of Justice on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, against former President Rodrigo Duterte, Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, and other personalities involved in the allegedly anomalous Philippine Navy (PN) Frigate Acquisition project. (Photo courtesy of Luisa Cabato)
MANILA, Philippines — Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Wednesday filed a second plunder complaint against former President Rodrigo Duterte, Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, and other personalities involved in the allegedly anomalous Philippine Navy (PN) Frigate Acquisition project.
Other respondents are former Defense Undersecretary Raymundo Elefante, former Budget Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao, former Navy chief Admiral Robert Empedrad, and seven private individuals.
READ: A timeline: Philippine Navy rides waves of frigates deal
Trillanes, a retired Philippine naval officer, accused the respondents of violating Section 2 of The Act Defining and Penalizing the Crime of Plunder and The Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
The complaint stemmed from the P16-billion frigate project, which involved buying two state-of-the-art warships for the PN. It started under the administration of late former President Benigno Aquino III and continued under Duterte’s leadership.
The project faced controversy in late 2017 when then Navy chief Vice Adm. Ronald Joseph Mercado was dismissed for pushing for a specific brand of combat management systems (CMS) for the frigates. These CMS were chosen by the PN’s technical working group.
“Nagbigay ng specifications ang PN na kung ano ang kailangan nila na gamit, ito ay dinaan sa bidding process. Pero nung nanalo na sa bidding biglang iniiba ng kontratista ‘yung mga nakalagay doon sa napag-usapan,” Trillanes said in an ambush interview after filing the complaint. He was referring to South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries.
(The PN provided specifications for what they needed, which went through a bidding process. But when the contractor won the bid, they suddenly changed the items that were agreed upon.)
Trillanes said Duterte allegedly forced the PN to accept the changes in the contract.
He also said PN officers in charge of the frigate project were summoned to the office of Go, who was serving as Special Assistant to the President at the time, where the contractor’s proposal was presented.
“At nung pumalag ‘yung PN, in this case ‘yung dating Flag-Officer-In-Command Vice Admiral Ronald Mercado, ang ginawa ni Duterte pinatanggal siya sa puwesto,” Trillanes claimed.
(And when the PN opposed it, in this case, former Flag-Officer-In-Command Vice Admiral Ronald Mercado, what Duterte did was remove him from his position.)
Mercado was replaced by Empedrad, who promptly approved the alleged illegal changes in the contract, bringing in additional billions in profit to the private contractor.
Go’s intervention was confirmed by Duterte during his 2019 State of the Nation Address, saying that he instructed Go to intervene in the frigate project.
READ: Trillanes hounds Duterte, Go with P6-B plunder rap
Last July 5, Trillanes filed a plunder complaint against Duterte for allegedly using his position as mayor and later as president to award public works contracts worth P6.6 billion to “unqualified” companies owned by Go’s father and half-brother.
The senator’s father, Deciderio Lim Go, and his half-brother, Alfred Armero Go, were also named as respondents in the case.