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Trillanes passes buck on Duterte’s bank accounts to media


Senator Antonio Trillanes IV is leaving it up to the media to decide whether or not to prod presumptive President-elect Rodrigo Duterte on the issue of his bank accounts allegedly containing multimillion-peso deposits, saying he already did his part by exposing its existence before the elections.

Trillanes, who has conceded defeat in the vice presidential race, said he does not want to be a “party pooper” and spoil the public’s post-election euphoria.

“Nasa sa media na ‘yan if you will pursue it because I did my part,” he said Monday when asked if he will pursue the issue of Duterte’s purported undeclared wealth now that the mayor is set to become the country’s 16th President.

“Ayoko namang maging party pooper because everyone’s celebrating. Euphoric mood ngayon and may initiatives ngayon to unite the country under the new president so it’s up to you, media,” the senator added.

Less than two weeks before the May 9 polls, Trillanes claimed that Duterte had accounts at the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Julia Vargas Avenue branch containing over P211 million in deposits, which he did not declare in his 2014 Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth (SALN).

Trillanes and Duterte’s lawyer faced off at the BPI branch last May 2 to open the mayor’s bank account.

However, the much-anticipated revelation of details of Duterte’s bank account failed to push through even after Trillanes presented the affidavit requested by the mayor’s camp as a pre-requisite for opening his bank accounts to the public.

Duterte's lawyer Salvador Panelo, however, said that they have already asked the said BPI branch to disclose the amount in the presidential candidate's account.

The bank, meanwhile, said it would take seven days, or after the May 9 elections at the very least, for it to certify that the Duterte account never contained P211 million.

Trillanes said it is best for the media to ask Duterte’s camp regarding updates on the issue of his bank accounts since the BPI might have already issued a certification regarding their contents.

“Probably BPI already complied pero tanungin niyo ang kampo nila (Duterte) kung paano na yung sa transaction history," he said.

Despite being at odds with Duterte during the campaign period, Trillanes vowed not to get in the way of the presumptive President-elect as he strives to fulfill his campaign promises.

"I will not be an obstructionist. I will give him (Duterte) all the latitude he needs para magawa niya ang lahat ng ipinangako niya sa kampanya," the senator said. —ALG, GMA News

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