De Lima: I'm Duterte's 'punching bag' used as a diversion

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Leila De Lima on Friday claimed that President Rodrigo Duterte is using her to divert attention away from allegations that his son, Paolo, is involved in the entry of billions worth of illegal drugs into the country.

De Lima said that she had been the “favorite punching bag” of the president whenever his administration was buffeted by a scandal, the most recent of which involving allegations that his son Paolo was an alleged protector of drug smugglers.

“Every time a scandal hits his administration, especially if it is connected to him or somebody close to him, Duterte goes on a diversionary tact using his favorite punching bag, me,” De Lima said in one of her dispatches from Camp Crame where she is detained on allegations that she was involved in the trade of illegal drugs at the New Bilibid Prison during her time as justice secretary.

During a congressional hearing, an importer said that people involved in bribery activities at the Bureau of Customs had been dropping Paolo’s name.

Mark Taguba said that a certain Tita Nanie told him that the P10,000 bribe per container given would go to a “Davao Group” headed by the presidential son, currently the vice mayor of Davao City. Taguba, however, clarified that it was possible that unscrupulous individuals were just using the presidential son’s name to facilitate the entry of their illegal contraband.

Amid the allegations, the president said that he was ready to resign if any of his children committed corruption, emphasizing that he would not condone such illegal activities in his government and would not hesitate to fire anyone involved in irregularities.

“Corruption was really one I do not like. Pati ‘yung anak ko ngayon, sinasali diyan sa Customs (Even my son is being dragged in the issues involving Customs). I told you before and I’m telling you now again, if any of my children is involved in corruption, I will immediately resign. That, you have my word,” Duterte said.

De Lima said that “some quarters” were already labeling Paolo “the lord of all drug lords” after the death of alleged drug syndicate leaders by the police.

The senator, one of the staunchest critics of the president, labeled the police involved in the operations that led to the death of former Albuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa and former Ozamiz City Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog as the president’s “PNP death squad.” Both mayors were accused of involvement in the illegal drugs trade in the country.

“[T]he name of the presidential son, Paolo Duterte, has been mentioned as one of the alleged protectors in the drug smuggling business during the recent Customs scandal, where P6.4B worth of shabu was discovered at the warehouse owned by one of the younger Duterte’s alleged close Chinese friends, a certain Richard Tan,” she said.

The president may be using his war on drugs to pave the way for his son to become the country’s top drug lord and smuggler, De Lima claimed. “This is the big story that the President wants to disappear,” she said.

She said that Paolo’s links to smuggling in Davao City was attested to by self-confessed Davao Death Squad member Edgar Matobato during his Senate testimony.  She said, “Matobato admitted that he was used as a bagman by Paolo and the other top leaders of the DDS in paying off customs officials at the Davao ports in order to smuggle shipments of contraband, most probably including drugs.”

She noted the similarities between the circumstances surrounding the discovery of billions worth of illegal drugs in a Valenzuela warehouse and the story narrated by Matobato.

The president launched an attack on the European delegation which visited her and “relived” her alleged sex video after the revelations in the congressional investigation, De Lima said.

“This much can be decoded from his now familiar Fentanyl-induced rambling style of speaking,” she said.

“Duterte continues to cover up his failures, this time his own son’s possible involvement in the smuggling of drugs, and keeps on using his long-running obsession with my supposed immorality as a diversion,” De Lima added, advising the president to just watch over and worry about his son.