Trillanes on Duterte accounts: P2 B not P200 M

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV yesterday corrected President Duterte with regard to the P200 million that he had allegedly stashed away in bank accounts.

Trillanes said that what he claimed was not that the President had P200 million in his accounts, but rather over P2 billion, which Duterte never declared in his statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN).

“By the way, my allegation wasn’t P200 million but more than P2 billion in accumulated credits in your bank accounts,” Trillanes said.

“Just sign a waiver para magkaalaman na. Sinungaling ka (so that the truth will come out. You are a liar),” he added.

In speeches last Thursday, the President lashed out at the Philippine Daily Inquirer and ABS-CBN for their supposedly unfair reporting when it came to issues involving him.

He cited in particular the reports on Trillanes’ allegations that Duterte and his family members failed to disclose billions of pesos in bank transactions over a period of several years when he was still mayor of Davao City.

Duterte has denied the allegations but this has not satisfied Trillanes, who has repeatedly challenged him to sign a waiver on the secrecy of bank deposits so that the details of his bank accounts would be made public.

“Mr. President, if the media reports based on my allegations weren’t true, then why didn’t you just sue me for libel?” Trillanes said.

Trillanes has filed a complaint of plunder against the President before the Office of the Ombudsman while his colleague from the Magdalo party-list Rep. Gary Alejano has filed an impeachment complaint against Duterte before the House of Representatives.