The Philippine Star

‘Yellows’ behind destabiliz­ation to face raps – Solgen

- By EDU PUNAY

Solicitor General Jose Calida yesterday claimed that the “yellows” are behind a destabiliz­ation plot against the administra­tion of President Duterte and warned that they would be made to pay for it.

Calida told The STAR that his office has started gathering evidence in preparatio­n for criminal cases against those behind the plan to bring down the Duterte administra­tion.

“There are obviously many attempts to bring down the President, which are part of a grand plan. Now, they are doing it before the internatio­nal community to gather attention and sympathy,” he stressed.

“I am now building the cases. To paraphrase a Bible verse, they who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind,” he added.

Calida did not identify who would be the possible subjects of the cases, but stressed they are mostly “yellows” or political personalit­ies identified with the Liberal Party.

“When they lost in the elections last year, these yellows are trying everything to bring down President Duterte. They just cannot accept defeat,” he alleged. The Solicitor General cited the complaint filed against Duterte and 11 other officials, including him, before the Internatio­nal Criminal Court (ICC) in the Netherland­s for supposed crimes against humanity in connection to the summary killings in the government’s war on illegal drugs.

He believes the complaint filed by Jude Jose Sabio, lawyer of self-confessed hit man Edgar Matobato, was baseless and only meant to destabiliz­e the administra­tion.

“Matobato is being coddled by (Sen. Antonio) Trillanes. So you would know the agenda right away,” Calida said.

Asked if he believes former president Benigno Aquino III could be part of the destabiliz­ation plot, Calida said: “He is the yellowest of them all.”

Calida earlier said he would file a disbarment case against Sabio and that he expects the ICC to dismiss the complaint for lack of jurisdicti­on.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II agreed with Calida’s opinion on the issue.

In a statement, Aguirre also claimed that the ICC complaint is obviously part of the plot “to destabiliz­e the Duterte administra­tion by discrediti­ng it before the internatio­nal community.”

“I believe that somebody is behind them because they will not be so brazen in their actions if there is no one holding the strings, purse strings included, behind the scenes,” he added.

Aguirre said Sabio should be asked who funded his trip to the ICC.

“Are these funders public officials at present? If yes, are they using the public funds of their offices to undermine the government? If yes, they should be investigat­ed and be made accountabl­e. If, on the other hand, the funding is private, then it is still an act of destabiliz­ation,” he said.

“These destabiliz­ers do not want the Filipino people to have a drug-free future. They hate it when the greater majority of our countrymen benefit from the many gains of the Duterte administra­tion,” he added.

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