The call of the Mindanao-based Eagle Fraternal Chapter of the Philippine Military Academy Alumni Association Inc. or PMAAAI to “immediately remove” Senator Antonio Trillanes IV from the association of PMA graduates reflects the military’s “overall sentiment,” Malacañang said Friday.
Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said the association’s plea demonstrated an expression of support toward President Rodrigo Duterte.
“That reflects the overall sentiment from the military,” Roque said.
He said the Palace remained confident that the military would not conspire to overthrow the President.
In other developments:
• Duterte said Thursday nobody was interested in arresting Trillanes following the senator’s claim his life would be in danger once he leaves the Senate premises.
“Nobody is interested to arrest [him]. The military does not have the interest. I do not have the interest. He can stay there [Senate] as a boarder,” Duterte told reporters in Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.
Duterte, who attended a briefing with the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council about Typhoon “Ompong” on Thursday night, said he had ordered the police forces not to arrest Trillanes without an arrest warrant issued by a court.
• Every day that Senator Antonio Trillanes IV is not in jail because of the proclamation which revoked his amnesty is a victory for him and a victory for the rule of law, Senator Francis Pangilinan said Friday.
“This is not just about Senator Trillanes, this is about the rule of law,” said Pangilinan who is also president of the Liberal Party.
“The decisions of the Supreme Court and the Makati courts on the case of Trillanes show that our courts are functioning.
“The courts have said he is entitled to due process. Due process is a fundamental right in our constitutional democracy. It is a part of our bill of rights and therefore due process is also being upheld here and therefore this is a victory for the citizens, this is a victory for all of us.”
*Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said Friday there was no arrest or “tracking “ order on Trillanes.
He made the statement in response to Trillanes’ claim on Thursday that plainclothesmen had been tailing his car.
“No order to arrest him nor to follow him,” Lorenzana said in a text message to GMA News Online.
Published as a newspaper advertisement on Friday morning, the association recommended Trillanes’ immediate expulsion from the group for acts unbecoming of an Academy alumnus.
“We are recommending his immediate ouster from the PMAAAI roll of members for acts unbecoming of a ‘PEEMAYER,’ through actions and behavior contrary to the Academy’s motto of courage, integrity and loyalty, thereby seriously damaging the honor and prestige of the revered institution,” the group’s statement says.
The association said Trillanes, a fierce critic of the President, incited sedition, committed the crime of coup d’etat and was involved in graft and corruption,
The group also said Trillanes was disrespectful and arrogant toward the association’s senior officers and to the President.
The group also said the senator perpetrated treasonous acts and engaged in propaganda activities and propagated lies.
Trillanes, who was a member of the PMA Marilag Class of 1995, was unmoved.
The latest manifesto came two weeks after Duterte issued Proclamation 572 revoking the amnesty given to Trillanes for alleged non-compliance with the requirements. With Macon Ramos-Araneta