Trillanes, AMLC summoned in impeachment proceedings

The House Committee on Justice voted in favor of the issuance of subpoenas to former Senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV and the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) in relation to its ongoing impeachment proceedings.

Both subpoenas were ordered to be promulgated based on the petitions of Justice panel members following their second hearing into the determination of probable cause relative to the two impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte.

It was Mamamayang Liberal Partylist Rep. Leila De Lima who motioned for the appearance of Trillanes in its upcoming hearing as he was cited in the third impeachment complaint endorsed by the solon.

The complaint from members of the clergy alleged that the former senator had documents pertaining to irregularities in the Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) of Duterte.

“On the matter of unexplained or ill-gotten wealth and non-disclosure of assets in the SALNs of the Vice President, the testimony and documents from Senator Trillanes would be very relevant,” she said.

De Lima further explained that Trillanes had already appeared in a QuadComm hearing during the 19th Congress, where he disclosed the bank accounts of President Rodrigo Duterte and his family, including the Vice President.

In relation to this development, Akbayan Partylist Rep. Perci Cendaña called for the Justice panel to order the appearance of AMLC.

Cendaña pursued the receipt of documents from the council with regard to its annual reports of covered and suspicious transactions that it had received from any banks related to the Vice President and her husband.

He also sought the AMLC to produce any investigations that it had conducted related to the said transactions.

The Justice panel is set to conduct its third hearing at the People’s Center Building at the Batasan Pambansa Complex in Quezon City on 22 April.