DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/18 August) — “Lahat ito ay (All of these are) political harassment, political attacks,” Vice President Sara Duterte said of the recent allegations against her husband, Manases “Mans” Carpio, and her brother, Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte, over an alleged shabu shipment.
“As I always say, hindi lang sa kasong i-finile sa kanila, lahat ito ay political harassment, political attacks (this is not just about the cases filed against them. All of these are political harassments, political attacks),” Duterte said told reporters at the Davao City Library and Information Center on Saturday afternoon, August 17.
“Nakikita niyo naman, lumabas siya nung umalis ako sa DepEd (Department of Education), lumabas siya nung nagsasalita na ako kung anong dapat pinagawa natin para sa ating bayan (You all see, they emerged when I resigned from DepEd, when I spoke out about what should be done in our country), she said.
Duterte on June 19 announced her resignation as DepEd Secretary effective July 19.
At the House of Representatives committee hearing on August 16, former Bureau of Customs (BOC) intelligence officer Jimmy Guban said Rep. Duterte, Carpio, and former presidential adviser Michael Yang were involved in the smuggling of PHP11 billion worth of shabu at the Manila International Container Port in 2018.
On July 31, former senator Antonio Trillanes IV filed cases of drug smuggling and graft and corruption before the Department of Justice against Rep. Duterte, Carpio, and other members of the alleged “Davao Group” last July 31.
The alleged “Davao Group” also included former Customs chief Nicanor Faeldon, former Army Colonel Allen Capuyan, Davao City Councilor Nilo “Small” Abellera, Charlie Tan, Teofilo Joseph “Jojo” Bacud, former Marine Colonel and Customs officer Neil Anthony Estrella, and Nanie “Tita Nanie” Cabatu Coronacion.
This is with their supposed involvement in another alleged large-scale drug smuggling operation, specifically an alleged shabu shipment worth billions that dates back to 2017 when 602.2 kilograms of alleged shabu worth P6.4 billion were imported from China using the Bureau of Customs’ express lane, which was later found by authorities in a warehouse in Valenzuela City.
Trillanes accused these individuals of violating Section 4, in relation to Section 26(a), of Republic Act 9165, known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, as amended by RA 10640, as well as RA 3019, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
The Vice President said she hopes the public will be reminded to focus more on government issues “such as poverty and the increasing prices of commodities” instead of those allegations against her husband and brother.
Duterte said she “expects” a possible impeachment case to be filed against her — a part of an apparent “mainit na pulitika (heated politics)” between their family and the current Ferdinand Marcos Jr. administration.
“Pero inuulit ko, sana ay hindi madala ang ating mga kababayan sa ingay ng politika, kung hindi tutukan talaga natin iyong totoong problema ng ating bayan (But I repeat, I hope our countrymen are not swayed by this political noise and focus instead on the real problems of our nation),” the vice-president said.
Rep. Duterte dismissed the accusations of Guban, who implicated him, Carpio, and Yang in the 2018 multi-billion-peso shabu shipment.
“Hindi ko po kilala si Jimmy Guban at sigurado ako na hindi rin niya ako kilala. Wala kaming anumang transaction o ugnayan kaya walang rason na siya ay pagbantaan kung babanggitin man niya ang pangalan ko (I don’t know Jimmy Guban, and I’m sure he doesn’t know me either. We have had no transaction or connection, so there’s no reason for him to be threatened if he mentions my name),” he said in a statement sent to the media on August 16.
Duterte also questioned Guban’s credibility, pointing out that Guban had previously been cited in contempt for “inconsistencies” in his testimonies. (Ian Carl Espinosa/MindaNews)
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