Palace: Trillanes doesn’t have authentic docs to bolster allegations

Malacañang on Monday shrugged off Senator Antonio Trillanes IV's call for a Senate probe into the alleged undisclosed bank transactions of President Rodrigo Duterte and daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, saying the opposition lawmaker has no solid proof.

At a press briefing, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Trillanes' allegations were rehashed and old news.

"Lumang tugtugin. Lumang balita para nang sirang plaka," Roque said.

He also said Trillanes does not possess any authenticated document from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) to establish his claims.

"Anong dokumento ang hawak ni Senator Trillanes? Wala naman siyang authenticated documents. Sinabi na nga ng AMLC na hindi galing sa kanila ang dokumento at mali mali ang datos na hawak ni Senator Trillanes," Roque said.

Mayor Duterte, for her part, said she felt sad for Trillanes and "his tireless attempt to rehash and recycle an issue that has already been proven as gossip."

"The senator cannot file a case because there is no basis for it. I have said this before and I am saying it again — Trillanes is lying," she said.

She said Trillanes cannot even produce Joseph de Mesa, who, according to his affidavit, was his source of information.

"He also says AMLC is the source of his documents and yet he twits President Durerte for not executing a waiver for AMLC. So how come he has a copy of a purported AMLC document without the waiver?" Mayor Duterte said.

"I am starting to believe the rumors that Trillanes is hooked on something that must have disrupted his sanity, destroyed his dreams, and triggered his obsession with President Duterte," she added.

Roque warned that any attempt by the President's opponents to bring him down may eventually backfire, citing Duterte's high popularity ratings.

"The President, as the surveys show, has unprecedented approval rating from the people. So mag-ingat sila. Habang ipinipilit nila tanggalin sa posisyon ang Presidente, magagalit sa kanila ang taumbayan. Baka ang people power laban sa kanila, hindi laban kay Presidente," the Palace official said.

In his resolution, Trillanes cited the Vera Files report that says Duterte and his daughter, Sara, had at least P100 million in joint deposits and investments that were not disclosed in their Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).

Vera Files said the report was based on documents previously released by Trillanes. The senator had claimed that the documents came from AMLC.

Late last month, Duterte said he is open for any investigation by Congress on reports questioning his wealth. —ALG, GMA News