Año files cyberlibel, perjury complaint vs. 18 'ex-Marines,' Baligod

A week after filing his first complaint, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año on Wednesday filed a cyberlibel and perjury complaint against the 18 alleged former Marines and lawyer Levito Baligod for implicating him in the controversy over alleged cash deliveries from former lawmaker Zaldy Co.

The official filed the complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) .

“Si Atty. Baligod, inadmit niya in public na he made the manipulation of the contents of the affidavit, no? Inadmit din niya that it’s an oversight or error on his part,” Año said in an ambush interview.

(Atty. Baligod admitted in public that he manipulated the contents of the affidavit, right? He admitted that this was an oversight or error on his part.)

“So sabi ng aking legal counsel, that constitutes to perjury,” he added.

(My legal counsel told me that constitutes to perjury.)

Last week, Año filed a complaint against Baligod, the alleged former Marines, and former congressman Mike Defensor for alleged a violation of Article 154, or the unlawful use of means of publication or unlawful utterances, of the Revised Penal Code in relation to the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

Año was accused of receiving a paper bag after a meeting at the Polo Club townhouse with Co, former Speaker Martin Romualdez, and Mamamayang Liberal Representative Leila De Lima.

According to Año, this complaint is more “personal” while his previous complaint was more against “fake news.”

“I want to make it clear, wala naman akong pakialam doon sa ibang pinagsasabi nila. Doon lang ako concerned sa malicious imputations and publications directed against me,” he said.

(I want to make it clear that I don’t care about what else they’re saying. I am only concerned regarding the malicious imputations and publications directed against me.)

“Para makita talaga natin kung sino ang nagsasabi doon ng publication. Dahil kasi joint affidavit ang ginawa nila eh. Kapag tinignan mo doon sa ginawa nila, bawat paragraph, may sinasabi kung sino ang nakakita. Pag dating sa akin, wala,” he added.

(So that we can see what they are really saying. Because they made a joint affidavit. If you look at the affidavit, they state who saw the allegations in each paragraph. But there’s nothing on the allegations against me.)

Año expressed belief that two individuals are behind the inclusion of his name, but refused to divulge who these are.

Meanwhile, Año said they are looking into possible threats of destabilization.

“Ang ating intelligence community ay gumagawa ng mga investigation kasi nakakapagtaka bakit sabay-sabay 'yung ganitong pangyayari,” he said.

(Our intelligence community is conducting investigations because it is suspicious why these kinds of incidents are happening all at the same time.)

The Philippine Navy previously stated that four of the 18 were never members of the Navy or the Philippine Marine Corps.

The National Bureau of Investigation has also started investigating the credibility and claims of the former marines. 

Aside from Año, former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, House Deputy Minority Leader Leila de Lima of the ML party-list and Fr. Flavie Villanueva, and Corrections Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. have filed complaints against the former marines and others. —AOL, GMA Integrated News