Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV shows a copy of his plunder complaint files at the Department of Justice on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, against former President Rodrigo Duterte, Sen. Christopher 鈥淏ong鈥 Go, and other personalities involved in the allegedly anomalous Philippine Navy frigate acquisition project. 鈥擯hoto courtesy of Luisa Cabato
MANILA, Philippines 鈥 Former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV filed another plunder complaint in the Department of Justice against former President Rodrigo Duterte and Sen. Christopher 鈥淏ong鈥 Go on Wednesday for allegedly manipulating a P16-billion contract for two Navy ships with 鈥渟tripped-down capabilities鈥 instead of modern frigates or state-of-the-art warships.
Trillanes, a former Navy officer, charged the ex-President, his then close aide, and several other government officials and officers of a South Korean shipbuilder with violating the plunder law, or Republic Act No. 7080, graft and corruption, culpable violation of the Constitution, and betrayal of public trust.
READ: A timeline: Philippine Navy rides waves of frigates deal
Also named respondents were former Defense Undersecretary Raymundo Elefante, former Budget Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao, retired Navy chief Vice Adm. Robert Empedrad, former defense acquisition chief Leodegario dela Paz and Marlon Dayao, legal officer of the project鈥檚 technical working group.
Included in the complaint were Kisun Chung, Ki Young Sung, Joung Woo Byun and Sandra Han of Hyundai Heavy Industries Inc. (HHI), which won the contract in 2016 to build two frigates, which were to be the most modern warships of the country.
Trillanes said 鈥渢he aggregate amount or total value of the ill-gotten wealth amassed, accumulated or acquired鈥 allegedly by Duterte, Go and the others from the contract between the government and HHI for the frigate acquisition program 鈥渋s at least P50,000,000.00.鈥
On his X account, Trillanes said he had vowed that he would file plunder charges against Duterte and Go after they leave Malaca帽ang.
READ: Trillanes hounds Duterte, Go with P6-B plunder rap
On July 5, he filed a plunder complaint against Duterte for allegedly using his position as mayor and later as President to award P6.6 billion worth of public works contracts to allegedly 鈥渦nqualified鈥 companies owned by Go鈥檚 father and half brother.
In his latest complaint, the former senator said Duterte and the other government officials used their positions to plunder state funds through 鈥渕isappropriation, conversion, misuse, or malversation of public funds鈥 or through direct or indirect commission, or gifts, shares, kickbacks or other 鈥減ecuniary benefits鈥 from the South Korean company.
Go, who was special assistant to the President during Duterte鈥檚 term, dismissed the plunder complaint as 鈥渁nother black propaganda鈥 against him and the former president, pointing out that the Senate had previously cleared him of any wrongdoing in the acquisition of the warships.
According to Go, he would rather focus his attention on his job as a lawmaker than 鈥渨aste my time鈥 answering the 鈥渞ehashed accusations鈥 that Trillanes had allegedly invented.
But he welcomed the filing of the complaint 鈥渢o finally put an end to these lies.鈥
鈥淭his issue has once again been rehashed and recycled for obvious politicking purposes,鈥 Go said in a statement. 鈥淭his is a clear case of destructive politics and sure sign of desperation out to malign me and the former president.鈥
Bidding under P-Noy
The procurement of the warships began during the term of the late President Benigno Aquino III, when the Department of National Defense (DND) opened the bidding in October 2013 for two brand-new frigates for the Navy, a major 鈥渕odernization鈥 project of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
The project had an approved budget of P18 billion.
Controversy over the project erupted in late 2017 after then Navy chief Vice Adm. Ronald Joseph Mercado was sacked for pushing the combat management systems (CMS) made by Tacticos of Thales Nederland, which was chosen by the Navy鈥檚 technical working group and compliant with the contract.
Trillanes, one of the most strident critics of Duterte, said in his 50-page complaint that the type of CMS chosen was 鈥渉ighly important鈥 as it would serve as the 鈥渂rain of a warship and a critical component of a naval ship鈥檚 combat systems.鈥
鈥淚ts purpose is to provide a solid background for all the other systems, including the weapon system, sensors, communication and navigation, among others, onboard the frigate,鈥 he said.
鈥楳aker list鈥
According to Trillanes, the respondents allegedly 鈥渕anipulated鈥 the process to push for and implement a 鈥渄ubious and clearly disadvantageous maker list,鈥 which included a provision allowing the shipbuilder to select all the major equipment, such as the CMS.
The HHI preferred the CMS from South Korean company, Hanwha Systems, which was 鈥渘ot yet tested by other navies in the world,鈥 Trillanes said on X.
He noted that the maker list was approved even though it did not conform to the specifications prescribed by the project management team, the AFP and the Philippine Navy.
Trillanes said Duterte and the others 鈥渦nduly favored鈥 HHI in procuring 鈥渁 cheaper and more disadvantageous and noncompliant brand of CMS for the frigates of the Philippine Navy, thereby causing damage and undue injury鈥 to the AFP, the Navy and the government.
To support his claims, Trillanes pointed out that on Oct. 24, 2016, while the contract agreement was being signed, a separate meeting was held at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila with senior managers from HHI and selected members of the project鈥檚 technical working group headed by Empedrad 鈥渨here a different version of the maker list was signed鈥 by Byun of HHI and Dayao.
Potential savings
Trillanes said the Navy 鈥渄iscovered鈥 that HHI would save more than P1 billion if Hanwha were chosen for the warships鈥 CMS.
The dispute over which CMS would be used鈥擳acticos or Hanwha鈥攔esulted in a 鈥渟talemate鈥 that was broken after HHI 鈥渇ound a padrino in Malaca帽ang鈥擝ong Go,鈥 he said.
Trillanes also cited a 鈥渨hite paper with a note鈥 that former Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana gave to Mercado, supposedly endorsing the CMS supplier chosen by HHI.
Lorenzana sent the document to Mercado with a signed Post-it note saying it was given to him by Go, who was then the special assistant to the president, to 鈥減repare a report/rebuttal鈥 to be submitted to Duterte, Trillanes said.
鈥淥bviously, someone is lobbying to the President Respondent Duterte through his long trusted aide Respondent Bong Go for HHI to be given the right to select the CMS for the [project], despite the fact that the same is against the Philippine Navy, AFP, DND and the country鈥檚 interest,鈥 he added.
Why the interest?
In addition, the ex-senator said Lao, who was then an undersecretary in the Presidential Management Staff-Office of the Special Assistant to the President, called Empedrad to come to Malaca帽ang on Jan. 20, 2017, to discuss the CMS selection.
鈥淲hy would the Office of the President through the Office of SAP-PMS be interested [in] such technical issues of CMS, if not to interfere with the execution of the contract of agreement involving the [project]?鈥 Trillanes said.
鈥淭hese unconscionable and outrageous actions of the Respondents can be characterized as pure betrayal of public trust,鈥 he added.
HHI had offered to bankroll expenses for the full integration of the CMS to Tactical Data Link 16 should there be problems with the two frigates it had built.
Link 16 is a military network used by Nato and allied forces to exchange data in real-time.
BRPs Rizal, Luna
The first frigate, BRP Jose Rizal, arrived in Manila in May 2020, and the second, BRP Antonio Luna, in February 2021.
Before Rizal and Luna, which are both missile-capable, the Philippine Navy鈥檚 most advanced warships were hand-me-downs from the country鈥檚 allies.
These were the former Pohang-class corvette from South Korea, BRP Conrado Yap, and former US Coast Guard cutters, which are now Del Pilar-class ships鈥擝RP Gregorio del Pilar, BRP Ramon Alcaraz and BRP Andres Bonifacio.
The Navy chief at the time, Vice Adm. Giovanni Carlo Bacordo, said the Rizal-class warships would be deployed for sovereignty patrols and 鈥渟how the flag missions,鈥 among others, around the archipelago, including the West Philippine Sea and Benham Rise. 鈥攚ith reports from Marlon Ramos, Frances Mangosing and Inquirer Research