By BEN ROSARIO
It was all political propaganda aimed at bringing down the Duterte administration.
Lawyer Jude Jose L. Sabio repeatedly made this assertion in his 28-page letter-affidavit sent to Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands last week.
In the letter that declared the withdrawal of his communication with the ICC in connection with Duterte’s bloody drug war, Sabio blamed former Sen. Antonio F. Trillanes IV numerous times for allegedly entertaining political motivations in the investigation of the crimes against humanity charges filed against Duterte.
But as Sabio aired his intention not to cooperate with the ICC probe on the Duterte drug war, he failed to clearly indicate that the communication he personally filed in 2017 with the international court may not be reliable in its investigation of Duterte.
Instead, Sabio zeroed in his lament on how Trillanes and his allies in the political opposition “used” him in pursuing their political agenda against Duterte.
Sabio said that Trillanes and Liberal Party personalities have fallen to the “Bikoy” trap hook, line, and sinker because of their intense political motive to hit Duterte.
“I denounce and condemn in the strongest terms possible Sen. Trillanes’ deceitful and dishonest attempt to recruit me to be the lawyer for alias ‘Bikoy’ whom he later belatedly as an afterthought claimed to have failed his vetting,” he said.
Sabio, lawyer for whistleblowers Edgar Matobato and Arturo Lascanas, was referring to Peter Joemel Advincula, the man behind the series of “Ang Totoong Narco List” (The Real Narcolist) videos that linked members of the Duterte family and close associates to big-time drug operations.
Advincula later showed up in public and accused religious personalities and opposition personalities, led by Vice President Leni Robredo, of being behind the falsehood shown in the video series.
“In a later conspiracy that involved nuns, bishops, and priests, lawyers and officers of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, Vice President Leni Robredo and high profile opposition senatorial bets, and most notably Sen. Trillanes, Sen. (Leila) de Lima, and Fr. Albert Alejo, so-called Totong Narcolist Videos were produced inside the Communications Center of the Ateneo de Manila University, a Jesuit-run academic institution, thru the active direction of Fr. Alejo who is a Jesuit priest,” Sabio told the ICC.
Sabio included in his letter column articles he wrote for the Mindanao Goldstar Daily where he detailed his meetings with Trillanes with whom he had a falling out later.
According to Sabio, it was Trillanes and his staff Jonnel Sangalang who handled Bikoy in collaboration with Alejo.
He accused Trillanes of “dishonesty and deception” for claiming that Bikoy did not pass through vetting process.
“Sen. Trillanes’ pronouncement that Advincula, alias Bikoy, did not pass his vetting is as exasperating to me as it is futile, dishonest, and deceitful because he had earlier tried to recruit me as a lawyer for Advincula alias Bikoy,” said the ICC complainant.
He resented being charged by government with participating in the Bikoy fake news, blaming Trillanes for it.
“I denounce the Bikoy political scandal as part of the political propaganda of Sen. Trillanes and his Magdalo Group in conspiracy with the Liberal-Party led opposition,” Sabio declared.
“Out of disenchantment over this irreconcilable difference with them, I am left with no choice but to distance myself from them and to withdraw my communication from the ICC, even as I continue and maintain may denunciation of them for using the ICC as a tool of political propaganda,” he said.
The lawyer added: “Considering that I sent to the ICC for justice, I do not want my communication to be used further by them for their political agenda.”