VP sees desperation in security probe

Vice President Sara Duterte on Tuesday accused the government of using national security allegations to undermine her, questioning claims involving Chinese remittances to a company linked to her husband and a multibillion-peso drug shipment intercepted in Laos.

In a statement, Duterte said authorities were trying to link separate issues into a conspiracy against her, including alleged Chinese funding for a business venture and the attempted smuggling of 521 kilograms of shabu from Laos to the Philippines.

“What we see instead is desperation, exemplified by a purported travel authority for Laos that appears to have been fabricated to prop up a narrative unsupported by credible evidence,” she said.

The statement followed the circulation of a purported Malacañang travel authority dated 28 September that allegedly allowed Duterte to visit Laos on 29 to 30 September.

The document surfaced after authorities disclosed that a private aircraft carrying 521 kilograms of suspected shabu worth about P3.5 billion had been intercepted at Luang Prabang International Airport in Laos on 1 October.

The Office of the Executive Secretary said, however, that it had received no request for such authority and had issued no travel clearance.

Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said the Duterte family was not linked to the drug shipment but confirmed that Sara Duterte and alleged shipment financier Sultan Edrieza Nasser Rimbang, a former member of the Bangsamoro parliament, had long been political allies.