Duterte on Napoles case: It’s up to Aguirre

President Rodrigo Duterte (right) and Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II in Malacañang. —JOAN BONDOC

President Rodrigo Duterte has distanced himself from the decision of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to place alleged pork barrel mastermind Janet-Lim Napoles under the government’s witness protection program (WPP).

Duterte said he would let Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II do his “strategy” on the handling the case involving Napoles.

“Si Vit Aguirre, sabi ko, ‘Bakit nasabit na naman siya dito kay Napoles?’ Eh diskarte ‘yan niya eh,” Duterte said in his speech at the Mayor Rodrigo Roa Duterte National Executive Coordinating Committee (MRRD-NECC) National Convention in Pasay City on Wednesday night.

(I said about Aguirre, “Why is he caught up in the Napoles issue again?” Well, it’s his strategy.)

Aguirre on Tuesday said the DOJ wanted Napoles to be a state witness.

READ: DOJ wants Napoles to be state witness

Napoles, who was earlier placed under provisional WPP, was now ready to “tell all” her knowledge about the P10 billion Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam, Aguirre said. /je

READ: Aguirre says Napoles now ready ‘to tell all’