MANILA, Philippines — “Huli ka na, bistado ka na, Mister Duterte, sinungaling ka [You’re already caught, we already know that you are lying, Mister Duterte].”
This was the message of Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV to Presidente Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday hours after the lawmaker, accompanied by journalists, went to banks in Singapore to belie the chief executive’s allegations that he had hidden bank accounts abroad.
After proving that he had no secret bank accounts in Singapore, Trillanes reiterated his challenge for Duterte to sign bank secrecy waivers so the President could also prove that he’s innocent and incorruptible.
“So ngayon, ibabalik ko ‘yong hamon sa kanya. Kailangan n’yang pumirma ng waiver. Pakita n’ya na s’ya ay inosente.”
“(P)umirma ka ng waiver para malaman naman ng taumbayan kung ikaw ay hindi kurakot. Alang-alang din sa mga loyalista mo pang iilan na naiiwan, na kahit anong gawin mong kabalbalan ay naniniwala sa’yo. Alang-alang sa kanila, pakita mo na di ka kurakot,” the senator added.
Trillanes went to DBS Bank in the city-state’s Alexandra Road where he allegedly kept an account with a balance of 193,000 SGD and account no. 17-8000-296012, according to Duterte.
Erroneous account number, was never a bank client
But Trillanes said he was told by a bank teller that he did not have an account with DBS and the account number he gave was “erroneous.”
“Erroneous ‘yong account numbers. Mali eh. So walang account numbers na gano’n,” Trillanes told reporters during an interview while they were in Singapore.
The senator also reacted to Duterte’s claim that he had already closed his bank accounts in Singapore.
According to Trillanes, if he indeed had the accounts but had already closed them, bank records would still show that he became its client.
“(K)ung meron mang history ‘yon, lalabas ‘yon. (If) it was already closed, sasabihin ‘yon ng teller. Kasi gano’n ang sistema ng bangko. Hindi ka mawawala sa system ‘pag nandyadyan ka na.”
The senator explained that he was unable to get a certification from the DBS because he was never a client of the bank.
“Yong certification, sinabi sa akin noong branch manager na hindi sila makakapagbigay dahil hindi naman ako kliyente o naging kliyente. Kung naging kliyente nila ‘ko, meaning, nag-close ako ng account ko, dati akong may existing account, p’wede silang mag-issue. Pero since hindi ako kliyente, hindi sila magbibigay,” he said.
The senator also went to the city-state’s Raffles City Tower and checked if there was a Hongkong Shanghai Bank there where he allegedly maintained another secret account with a balance of about 278,000 SGD and account number 001-6729-915-127.
However, there was no such bank there. If Duterte meant that it was HSBC or Hongkong Shanghai and Banking Corp. Ltd., there was also no bank of that name on Raffles City Tower’s business listing.
Trillanes also went to Raffles Boulevard to check if there was an HSBC branch there but the senator only found an HSBC automated teller machine in the area.
The senator said he do everything to prove his innocence and Duterte’s allaged lies and use of government power to destroy the members of the opposition.
Trillanes to Duterte: ‘You’re using gov’t power to destroy the opposition’
“So I will go to such great lengths to clear my name and at the same time prove na sinungaling ka at ginagamit mo ‘yong kapangyarihan ng gobyerno para sirain ang mga miyembro ng oposisyon,” he said.
Duterte earlier claimed that Trillanes had several currency accounts in Shanghai, Zurich, Geneva, Singapore, Cayman Islands, and British Virgin Islands.
The President made his allegations against Trillanes after the senator linked the chief executive’s son, Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo “Pulong” Duterte and son-in-law Manases “Mans” Carpio to drug smuggling and corrupt activities at the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
Following the chief executive’s accusations, Trillanes signed waivers on his alleged bank deposits, authorizing the Office of the Ombudsman and the Anti-Money Laundering Council to look into his accounts here and overseas.
The lawmaker dared the President to also sign bank secrecy waivers. But Duterte refused and said that, “If Trillanes wants to find something of fault with me, tell him, ‘Go somewhere else and fly a kite.’”
‘Pusoy ka na, checkmate ka na’
On Tuesday, Trillanes said Duterte had fabricated his claims against him so the President could divert public attention away from Pulong’s alleged hand in illegal drug shipment and smuggling at the BOC and the chief executive’s bank deposits allegedly worth billions of pesos.
“Ito ay ginagawa niya para siraan ako bilang kritiko niya at para malihis ang atensyon sa involvement ng anak n’yang si Pulong sa illegal drug shipment at sa BOC smuggling at sa paratang ko na meron syang bilyon bilyong pisong deposits sa BPI accounts n’ya,” the senator said.
“Mister Duterte, pusoy ka na. Checkmate ka na. ‘Wag ka na magpalusot. Pumirma ka na lang ng waiver para malaman na ng mga loyalista mo kung ga’no ka kakurakot,” added Trillanes.
In April 2016, before the national elections, Trillanes alleged that Duterte had bank transactions amounting to P2.407 billion.
From 2006 to 2015, Duterte allegedly held seven joint accounts with his daughter, Sara Duterte-Carpio at the Bank of the Philippine Islands branch in Julia Vargas Avenue, Pasig City; nine joint accounts at the BPI Edsa Greenhills branch; and one joint account at Banco de Oro Unibank-1 in Davao City.
Trillanes claimed deposits and transfers in the three banks totaled 71, of which 48 were credit memos and 23 were inter-bank transfers, including seven deposits amounting to P193 million, which were purportedly credited to Duterte’s BPI Julia Vargas account on March 28, 2014, the 69th birthday of the then Davao mayor.
Also in April 2016, Duterte denied Trillanes’ allegation and said that “I have an account, with a little less than 200 million.” Asked why he did not declare the P200 in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth, Duterte said, “I already spent it.”
WATCH SEN. TRILLANES’ INTERVIEW WITH REPORTERS:
