Aguirre explains why he didn’t arrest Mighty owner

Mighty Corp. owner Alex Wong Chu King. (PHOTO BY MARIANNE BERMUDEZ /INQUIRER

MANILA — Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II disregarded President Duterte’s order for the arrest of Mighty Corporation owner Alex Wong Chu King, allowing the businessman to walk free after their closed door meeting on Tuesday.

In a statement on Wednesday, Aguirre explained that he did not have King arrested because there was no case against Wong Chu King, whom the President accused of economic sabotage.

He said that during the closed door meeting, the businessman expressed his willingness to fully cooperate with any probe.

“I believe that the proper thing to do is for the representatives of Mighty Corporation, the Department of Finance, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the DOJ to sit down and to fully determine the exact liabilities of Mighty Corporation, if any, and for the government to collect what is rightfully due to it,” Aguirre pointed out.

He assured the public that should the BIR and the BOC find cause to file charges against Wong Chu King as well as other officers of Mighty Corporation, the DOJ would do its duty and determine the existence of probable cause.

“There is no reason to have Alex Wong Chu King arrested as of the moment.  While the DOJ is at the forefront of ensuring that our laws be faithfully obeyed, there is a process that has to be observed under the law,” Aguirre emphasized.  SFM