Duterte camp refused to open accounts, Trillanes says

MANILA, Philippines (2nd update, 12:54 pm) - The anticipated showdown between Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV and the camp of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on Monday failed to put to rest allegations of undeclared wealth since the mayor's lawyer did not open the accounts, the senator said.

"Ako ay nagbigay ng affidavit pero hindi pa rin pumirma ng waiver si Duterte at hindi rin binuksan ang kanyang bank account. Ang hinihingi lang nila ay balanse at hindi transaction history," Trillanes said in a statement sent to reporters before noon on Monday.

On Monday morning, Duterte lawyer Salvador Panelo said the Davao City mayor had authorized him to release records on accounts that Trillanes has alleged has had transactions worth P2.4 billion. Duterte's camp had earlier said that the accounts would be opened if Trillanes submits an affidavit detailing where he got the information on the allegedly undisclosed accounts.

Trillanes said that he gave Panelo a copy of the affidavit but that the Duterte camp did not open the bank records. He stressed that the information did not come from the Bank of the Philippine Islands. BPI has already issued a statement denying there has been a breach in its security.

The senator said in a phone interview over GMA News TV that a bank statement stating the account balance cannot disprove his allegation since it does not show the transaction history. 

"Samakatuwid, may tinatago sa bayan si Mayor Duterte, at ang akusasyon kong may may P2.4 bilyon na transaksyon sa kanyang bank accounts ay hindi niya napasinungalingan," Trillanes said in his e-mailed statement.

Duterte initially denied the existence of the accounts, but later acknowledged that he has accounts at the BPI branch in Julia Vargas in Pasig. He said, however, that they do not contain P211 million as originally alleged by Trillanes. He and his camp have also dismissed Trillanes' allegations as politically motivated.

Trillanes, a candidate for vice president, supports Sen. Grace Poe. 

Panelo: Delay was with bank

Panelo told reporters that BPI needed time to study his client's request for a certification that the account does not have "P211 million whether singly, collectively or cummulatively" because it was not a standard certification that a bank gives. 

"Kami, wala kaming problema doon dahil meron nga akong SPA [special power of attorney] but the bank asked for seven days," he said outside the bank.

He added that he will not release the records but that the Duterte camp is asking the bank to do so. 

"Hindi naman ako ang bangko," he said.

Trillanes: Source was concerned citizen

Trillanes said in his signed affidavit that he met a certain Joseph De Mesa, whom he described as a concerned citizen claiming to have vital information on Duterte, on April 21.

The senator said De Mesa used to be a Duterte supporter but withdrew support when he saw documents that suggested that Duterte had kept numerous accounts that "where hundreds of millions, if not billions, were deposited/transferred over the years." He said that De Mesa got the documents through a relative "who was working with an agency involved in investigating ill-gotten wealth of government officials."

He said that De Mesa gave him documents related to the BPI accounts and to a BDO bank branch in Mandaluyong City. He said that he and his staff vetted the information and checked them against Duterte's Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth in the periods covered.