Senators Antonio Trillanes IV and Richard Gordon. INQUIRER and AP FILE PHOTOS
Expect no more word war between Senators Antonio Trillanes IV and Richard Gordon as they settled their issues quietly on Wednesday.
Trillanes came to Gordon’s office before the session at 3:30 p.m. and was mum when the media asked about their meeting.
“Mas marami kasing nare-resolve na mga bagay directly and quietly so I promise not to issue statements about the matter,” Trillanes told reporters.
He denied that his visit had something to do with the reported plan to file an ethics complaint against him over his alleged “unparliamentary” acts during Monday’s hearing of the Senate committee on justice and human rights chaired by Gordon.
“No, no. Sa akin wala ito. Kung ano ang kailangang gawin, gawin. Basta no more comment about the issue,” Trillanes said, adding that they remain colleagues and they could still communicate “freely.”
Asked if there was an agreement to end the word war, he said: “Basta wala na akong sasabihin so we can move forward.”
It was Gordon, who disclosed in a separate interview, what transpired during their meeting.
“Senator Trillanes is gentleman enough to come to the office and he said that it just so happened that he was very passionate about the cause and that he was going to stop the word war already. And I said no problem, we’re gonna be here for long time. Magsama tayo ng matino para masaya tayo dito,” Gordon said.
“So tapos na yun. We’ll move forward,” he said.
Gordon also changed his mind about delivering a privilege speech about what happened during Monday’s hearing of his committee where he had a heated exchange with Senator Leila de Lima, whom he accused of “material concealment” for her alleged failure to disclose to the committee that self-confessed assassin Edgar Matobato had a kidnapping case.
READ: Gordon, De Lima feud over Matobato’s kidnap case, Senate hearing on drugs stopped
Matobato, who claimed to be a former member of the so-called Davao Death Squad, has accused President Rodrigo Duterte of allegedly ordering the killings of criminals and enemies when the latter was still mayor of Davao City.
“Senator de Lima has been under severe stress. I have never wanted to add to her stress,” Gordon said of his decision not to push through with his speech.
Asked if he would also talk to de Lima, Gordon answered yes saying that he still considers her a friend.
“Hiindi naman sya kalaban e. Yung debate iba, iba yung kaaway. Huwag lang mamemersonal,” he said.
Asked again if he would still purse an ethics complaint against de Lima, Gordon said they would talk about it first saying that the case is a serious matter.
READ: Gordon mulls filing ethics complaint vs De Lima for ‘unparliamentary’ remarks, conduct