Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV would not only resign from the Senate but would voluntarily put himself in jail if proven wrong that President Rodrigo Duterte had more than P2 billion hidden wealth.
Trillanes issued this new challenge to Duterte on Thursday after the Anti Money Laundering Council (AMLC) rejected his request to release Duterte’s bank records as that would violate the Bank Secrecy Law.
He said the AMLC’s refusal to release the bank records only showed that the President was lying when he ordered the council last February to reveal his wealth and investigate the senator’s allegations against him.
READ: Duterte orders AMLC: Reveal my true wealth, probe Trillanes charges
“So dito niyo makikita na nagsisinungaling muli si Duterte at nagtatago sa mga teknikalidad para hindi mabisto yung kanyang P2 billion na ninakaw sa kaban ng bayan,” Trillanes said at a new conference in the Senate, where he released the copy of the AMLC’s letter to him dated March 29, 2017.
(“So here you see that Duterte is lying again and hiding behind technicalities so that the P2 billion he stole from the nation’s coffers will not be revealed.”)
The senator said he would not stop until the President had disclosed his true wealth. He then challenged the President to issue a waiver and allow the opening of his bank records to once and for all remove any doubts of his corruption.
“Kailangan kasi waiver,” Trillanes said. “Ang gawin ni Duterte , pumirma ka ng waiver. Marami ka pang drama, marami ka pang arte. Pumirma ka ng waiver para malaman na ng taumbayan kung ano yung totoo.”
(“What is needed is a waiver. Duterte has to sign a waiver. You engage in so much drama. Just sign a waiver so that the people will know the truth.”)
“So again andudun yung challenge ko: Pagka mali yung aking alegasyon, magre-resign ako sa Senado,” he added. “Hindi lang yan, mag wa-walk-in pa ako sa kulungan. Magwa walk-in ako sa kulungan para hindi mo na ako kailangang kasuhan pa, kasi mag wa-walk-in ako sa kulungan kung mali ang aking alegasyon.”
(“So again here’s my challege: If my allegation is wrong, I will resign from the Senate. Not only that – I will walk into jail. I will walk into jail so that you will not have to file a case against me, because I will walk into jail if my allegation is wrong.”)
Trillanes said he would willing to be jailed anywhere if his allegation was wrong.
He said he would present evidence against Duterte during the hearings on the plunder case that he had filed against the President and even during an impeachment proceeding. An impeachment complaint has already been filed against the President at the House of Representatives.
“Pero padaliin na natin,” he said. “Tanggalin na niya yung duda alang-alang dun sa kanyang mga blind supporters, mga die-hard followers na sinasabing malinis siya. Pakita niya. At presidente siya, hindi siya ordinaryong tao. Presidente siya. Dapat wala siyang bahid ng duda.”
(“But we will make it quicker. He has to remove the doubt for the sake of his blind supporters, his die-hard followers who are saying that he’s clean, Let him show it. And he’s the President. He’s not an ordinary person. He’s the President. There should not be a trace of doubt about him.”
“Buti kung walang alegasyon,” he added. “Pero ako may alegasyon at mayroon pa akong hamon.”
(“It would be different if there’s no allegation. But I have an allegation and a challenge.”)
“So if he wants to get rid of me, this is the easiest way to do it. So better do it now.” he said. /atm/rga