CURRENT efforts to destabilize the Marcos administration, like the past five attempts, is doomed to fail since its main objective is to bring back former President Rodrigo Duterte to power, former senator Antonio Trillanes IV said yesterday.
In an interview with radio dyPM, Trillanes said the recruitment of additional group members is still ongoing, but prime movers of the destabilization plot have allegedly so far failed to convince any member of the police and armed forces to join their cause.
The recruitment is supposedly being done by “remnants” of the “Davao Group” in the PNP, whose movements, according to the former senator, have been “limited” after their identities were verified by the police leadership.
Trillanes said the Davao Group tried five times to start an uprising against the Marcos administration but all attempts failed.
He said the recruitment to destabilize the administration was confirmed by AFP chief of staff Gen. Romeo Brawner “late last year.”
“May recruitment na nangyayari sa hanay ng AFP. Si Gen. Brawner mismo (nagsabi). Hindi humihinto ‘yung ganitong activities, tuloy-tuloy ang recruitment but unfortunately, hanggang ngayon ni isa ay wala pang nare-recruit sa AFP (There is recruitment among the ranks of the AFP. Even Gen. [Romeo] Brawner said that. This has not stopped, but unfortunately, they have not recruited anyone in the AFP up to now),” Trillanes said.
“Wala namang nare-recruit na bago kasi paano ka naman makukumbinsi na sasama sa ganyang pagkilos eh ang objective lang naman ay ibalik sa puwesto si Duterte, kung hindi man eh para mag-assume ng power ‘yung VP. Ganoon po ‘yun (They have not recruited forces because how can they convince others to join them when the objective is just to bring [former president] Duterte back in power or have the Vice President [Sara Duterte] assume power),” he added.
He said that when Duterte was still president, he formed a “syndicate” in the PNP which was known as the “Davao Group.”
Trillanes said some members of the group were dismissed from service due to their involvement in the irregularities related to the seizure of a big shabu haul in Tondo, Manila in October 2022.
Trillanes said the remnants of the group are the ones who continue to recruit new members. “Sa ngayon, hindi po magtatagumpay. Base sa information natin, pang-limang attempt na nilang patalsikin itong Maros administration. So, limang beses na rin silang hindi nagtatagumpay pero hindi po humihinto (They will not succeed. Based on my information, it is their fifth attempt to topple the Marcos administration. So, they have also failed five times but their recruitment is not stopping),” he added.
As part of its “communication plans,” he said the group capitalizes on issues affecting the administration, in the hopes that these will spark the people’s anger against the Marcos government.
The issues include the “pastillas scam” investigated by the Senate Committee on Women, the committee hearings being held by Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, including the “PDEA Leaks,” and the Maisug rally in Davao.
“Lahat ‘yan pang-agitate ng mga kababayan natin, hoping to create some outrage. Tapos sa outrage ng publiko hope nila na makapa- recruit sila sa hanay ng AFP. But so far, nagfi-fizzle out lahat, hindi kumakagat ang publiko kasi talagang malabnaw, mababaw ang mga isyu na nilalabas (All of these are meant to agitate the people, hoping to create some outrage. Then they will use the outrage to recruit from the ranks of the AFP. But so far, everything has fizzled out, the people are not buying it because the issues being raised are shallow, diluted),” he said.
