FORMER Davao City vice mayor Paolo Duterte is now eyeing to file criminal, civil libel charges against Senator Antonio Trillanes IV.
In a statement, Duterte seeks to file criminal and civil complaints against Trillanes for maliciously implicating him in the purported P6.4 billion worth of methamphetamine hydrochloride, locally known as “shabu,” smuggled into the country last year.
“Senator Trillanes manufactured lies and deliberately spread these lies with the obvious intention of destroying my name and maligning my reputation, with a view to impacting negatively against our beloved President,” Duterte said.
He added, “The Senator was apparently emboldened by his false reliance on and abuse of his parliamentary immunity. But this immunity does not apply to libelous remarks made during media interviews, clearly as these attacks were done outside the halls of the Senate — and definitely not when these were discharged with the pure intention of destroying me.”
Paolo had earlier labeled the accusations made by Trillanes as pure lies and based entirely on gossip and as part of the black propaganda against the President and his Government.
In December, he also filed civil damage suit against Trillanes over the Senator’s downright false allegations that he was involved in graft and corruption. (KVC)