MANILA – Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio said the linking of her brother, Davao congressman Paolo Duterte, and husband, Atty. Manases Carpio, to drug smuggling is political harassment.
According to Duterte-Carpio, it is puzzling that all of these took place after she resigned from her Cabinet posts under the Marcos administration and after she expressed her views against the government.
“Hindi lang diyan sa kaso na finile laban sa kanila pero lahat ito ay political harassment, political attacks,” the Vice President said in an interview in Davao City over the weekend.
“Nakikita niyo naman lumabas siya nung umalis na ako sa DepEd, lumabas siya nung nagsasalita na ako kung ano ang dapat ginagawa natin para sa bayan,” Duterte-Carpio added.
“Sana hindi makalimutan ng taumbayan na ang tunay na problema natin ay kahirapan at problema ng mga tao sa mahal na pagkain, ‘yun talaga ang basic na problema at basic na need ng mga tao,” she further said.
Duterte-Carpio, however, opted not to comment further on the linking of her husband to the illegal drug shipment during the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Nagkasundo kami ng husband ko na hindi ako makikialam sa issues involving him, same na hindi siya makikialam sa issues involving me,” Duterte-Carpio said.
Jimmy Guban, who identified himself as the acting chief intelligence officer of the Bureau of Customs, said that Paolo, Carpio, and Chinese businessman Michael Yang served as facilitators of massive illegal drug importations in the previous administration.
In his testimony before the congressional Quadcom committees, Gumban identified Davao City councilor Nilo “Small” Abellera, Jr. as the conduit for Paolo, Carpio and Yang who wanted the Customs intelligence section to turn a blind eye to their shipments that mostly contained “palaman,” slang for illegal drug shipments disguised as importations of agricultural products like sugar, rice and vegetables.
Paolo and Yang have both denied their involvement in the drug smuggling as they question the testimony of Guban, who was previously contempt in the Senate for giving false testimonies./PN
