THE PNP yesterday urged former senator Antonio Trillanes IV to share with the police force his information on two active police generals from Mindanao who are allegedly involved in a plot to oust President Marcos Jr.
PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo maintained the PNP has not received any confirmed report about an ongoing plot to destabilize government or oust the President.
Trillanes, a former Navy officer, on Tuesday said his sources from the Army disclosed that retired and active police officials are involved in the supposed ouster plot, which the PNP dismissed immediately based on information from the intelligence community.
On Wednesday, Trillanes told a television interview that “we are not talking about the top brass of the PNP, we are talking about two Mindanao-based senior PNP officials (who are involved in the plot).”
Trillanes did not name the two generals but said he was sure the PNP “is aware of the activities of these two identified PNP personnel who are based and assigned in Mindanao.”
Trillanes said he exposed the plot because he does not want Vice President Sara Duterte to assume power. He added he wants Marcos to finish his six-year term.
Commenting on Trillanes latest remarks, Fajardo asked Trillanes to share information with the PNP leadership if he has evidence on the involvement of these officials to the ouster plot.
Fajardo said it will be in the “best interest” of Trillanes and “interest of the PNP” if the PNP will be made aware of the information.
“If he has holdings (information), he can talk to our Chief PNP (Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil) to share whatever information he has,” said Fajardo.
Fajardo said Marbil, on the sidelines of a PNP command conference yesterday, told her “we have not received such information.”
“(There are) no active PNP officials, whether commissioned officers or non-commissioned officers, involved in any destabilization plot,” said Fajardo.
Fajardo said the morale of policemen is high, implying they have no reason to join such plot.
Fajardo said the destabilization plot was not even discussed during the command conference “because the Chief PNP is confident that there is no truth to the rumors about the destabilization involving PNP personnel.”
LOSING ALLIES
Administration lawmakers said the Duterte camp will surely lose allies in the run-up to the 2025 midterm elections for trying to destabilize the administration by maligning the President.
Isabela Rep. Faustino Dy said he expects members of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s Partido Demokratikong Pilipino (PDP) and Vice President Sara Duterte’s Hugpong ng Pagbabago party to jump ship and join the newly-formed alliance between the ruling party Lakas-CMD and Partido Federal ng Pilipinas called the “Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas” (Alliance for the New Philippines).
“PDP or Hugpong members who do not agree with what is happening and still want to be part of our President’s banner of unity, progress for our country, will be probably knock on the doors of other parties and join it,” Dy said in Filipino at press conference with fellow lawmakers.
Dy also slammed the Duterte camp for calling a recent event in Davao City a “peace prayer-rally” when its primary focus, he said, was to malign the President and his administration “but they’re not even offering any other solutions to what they’re saying or the problems.”
“The fact that they are calling it a peace rally is a bit ironic,” Dy said. “It’s not all about peace. Puro paninira ang nangyayari, puro pambabastos pa (A smear campaign is what’s happening, its full of insults, too).”
It was also during these so-called prayer-rallies that the Vice President’s father. former President Rodrigo Duterte, accused Marcos of being a drug addict and criticized efforts to amend the 1987 Constitution, accusing congressmen of trying extend the term of sitting officials when the Charter change resolution clearly states that only “restrictive” economic provisions will be amended.
At one prayer-rally in Manila, former congressman Glenn Chong even threatened to slap First Lady Liza Marcos-Araneta and in Tagum City, former Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez urged the Armed Forces to withdraw support from the President over his handling of the issue in the West Philippine Sea.
Rep. Jude Acidre (PL, Tingog) said that many PDP members remain supportive of the Marcos administration, they will soon have to choose which team to side.
“This is my challenge to the PDP party: They will have to choose at a certain point, they must emphasize whether they are for the country or will they tolerate these kinds of words against the President?” he said in Filipino.
Acidre said in the case of House members belonging to PDP, he could see that most of them still support President Marcos and the leadership of Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Zambales Rep. Jefferson Khonghun said former presidential spokesman Harry Roque, who said during the anti-Marcos “prayer-rally” in Negros Oriental that Vice President Sara Duterte is the “true president,” seems to be having a nightmare.
“The Filipino people will not support what they want to happen,” he said.
Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong of Lanao del Sur dismissed Roque’s statement.
“It’s laughable to think (that) for somebody who has served in government to even insinuate that the real president is Sara Duterte. I mean, is he trying to create a parallel universe here?” he said.
Rep. Jil Bongalon (PL, Ako Bicol) said Roque’s remarks are “irrelevant” and that the former Palace spokesman is just “trying to be relevant nowadays.” — With Wendell Vigilia
