Former president Rodrigo Duterte (Santi San Juan/ MANILA BULLETIN)

Former president Rodrigo Duterte's flip-flopping response to a challenge for him to sign a bank waiver have left House of Representatives members scratching their heads. 

This challenge was issued by former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who last Wednesday, Nov. 13 once again brought up the allegation that the Duterte had received an estimated P2.4 billion in "drug proceeds" in the past.

Duterte and Trillanes served as resource persons of a 13-hour House quad-committee (quad-comm) hearing on the former's bloody drug war that day.

Initially, Duterte was very straightforward in his statements. “I’ll sign the waiver tomorrow (Nov. 14),” he originally offered.

When House Assistant Majority Leader Lanao del Sur 1st district Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong first mentioned the word “waiver” in his interpellation, Duterte replied: “The waiver? Yes” right away. 

“I’m willing to execute an affidavit, to summon the bank pursuant to my waiver. If there is an iota of truth, I will ask my daughter [Vice President Sara Duterte] to resign and all members of my family. I will also hang myself in front of you,” Duterte declared. 

But just a few minutes later, he issued a caveat, most likely because Trillanes was there seated just three chairs away from him. 

“Trillanes should also hang himself too,” Duterte said.

Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro--a lawyer by profession--likewise noticed the “inconsistencies” in the testimony of the former Davao City mayor-turned-president.

“The President made his testimonies inconsistent. I don’t know why,” she said in a television interview after the hearing. 

Even Adiong felt the need to be doublecheck even after Duterte assured the mega-panel that he would sign the bank waiver at first instance, without any conditions. 

“So, is it now the understanding of the committee that when the former president was asked by Chairman [Antipolo City 2nd district Rep. Romeo] Acop that the president be willing to sign any waiver, would that be safe to assume, Mr. Chair, that that would be ‘conditional?” Adiong clarified. 

Adiong made this assumption on the basis that, “When the former President right away answered the question of Acop, I presume that it was actually in the affirmative and it was actually in all candidness all honesty.”

Further into the hearing, Duterte--himself and lawyer--would give an excuse as to why executing a waiver for his bank secrecy rights would be complicated. 

“Please give me one purpose. Why should I produce it? My problem is that that bank account is joint with my wife. So, I cannot waive her right to secrecy. I myself has no problem with that. The problem is that it is a joint account,” Duterte said.

“So, I have to ask my wife to appear here and to ask her if she is ready to waive the bank secrecy law. The problem is: What is the purpose of this investigation? Am I under investigation? Why are you asking for my bank accounts? What is my purpose here?” said the former leader, who had completely changed his tone at this point.

“I don’t want you (congressmen) to make a suspicion. So, if not in public I’ll give you a copy, I’ll show you a copy on the condition that it sticks with you. The problem is that it is a joint account, at the back of my mind: How about my wife?” he reiterated. 

“I'm sure you (lawmakers) have a wife and you have bank accounts. It's always when you have a wife, it's really a joint account - that is the Filipino way of doing it,” Duterte justified his reluctance further. 

Trillanes corrects Duterte 

Trillanes, the main source of the drug proceeds allegation, refuted the former president’s alibis. 

“Just for the record, the joint account is between Duterte and [Vice President] Sara Duterte--not the wife. Those are the bank records that are in our custody," he said.

“Just like what I anticipated earlier, that he’s been saying he is willing to sign a waiver. At the same time, it’s always a bluff. Now, he’s saying he will slap me first before he signs the waiver. I will agree, provided he should first sign the bank waiver,” the former military officer shot back at his fellow resource person. 

Vice President Duterte attended the quad-comm hearing as a spectator.