Responding to the challenge of Special Assistant to the President Christopher “Bong” Go, opposition Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Friday dared him to sign a waiver to establish the source of his alleged “vast wealth,” being a billionaire as claimed by President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Yes, let’s have a one-on-one in the signing of a waiver. His boss [Duterte] can also join us,” said Trillanes.
A staunch critic of the President and his administration and family members, Trillanes noted that this is his challenge to Go, which has “sense and value.”
“Because Duterte said Bong Go is a billionaire so we will know where his money came from,” said Trillanes.
Go dared Trillanes to a “one-on-one” after the lawmaker criticized him for being coy about his political plans.
In a recent media interview, Trillanes took potshots at Go for denying that he will run for senator in the 2019 elections when his face was ‘‘plastered in the four corners of the country.’’
Go issued the challenged to the former navy officer in an interview over the state-run Radyo Pilipino on Thursday, his 44th birthday.
During the campaign period in the last presidential election, Trillanes also dared Duterte to sign a waiver to dispute his assertion that the Chief Executive owns over P2 billion in ill-gotten wealth deposited in several banks.
However, the President did not take up Trillanes’ challenge as he repeatedly denied the existence of said bank accounts.
On Thursday, Trillanes strongly reacted to the plan of former Davao City vice mayor Paolo Duterte to file libel charges against him for linking the former Davao City vice mayor to the illegal shabu shipment from Xiamen, China last year.
The senator described the libel charge as another frivolous lawsuit meant to harass and divert his attention.
“But I will not be cowed, I’ll face the lawsuit squarely,” he said.
Trillanes had maintained that during the Senate inquiry, he was merely able to present substantial evidence of the links of the former vice mayor to the major players of those behind the P6.4 billion shabu shipment.
“And that’s not the first time that the name of Mr. Paolo Duterte was linked in drug importation. During the testimony of Mr. Arthur Lascanas, he mentioned that Mr. Paolo Duterte, in connivance with a certain Charlie Tan, imported illegal drugs to the Customs of Davao City,” Trillanes said.
“During the Senate inquiry also, his name was mentioned by the key witness, Mark Taguba. So, there you go,” he added.
Trillanes also had a spat with presidential daughter Davao Mayor Sara Duterte. The latter’s husband, lawyer Maneses Carpio, was also linked by Trillanes to the said shabu shipment.