Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa said on Friday, Sept. 20, that former Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog's testimony before the House quad-committee (quad-comm) is part of a demolition job.
"This is a demolition job para masira kami lahat at hihina si VP Sara sa 2028 (This is a demolition job to destroy us and weaken Sara Duterte's chances in 2028)," Dela Rosa told reporters in a telephone interview.
"That's a purely demolition job. Halata naman. Ano ba in the aid of legislation na makikita mo dyan? Wala man akong nakikita. Matagal naman yung mga imbestigasyon na yan (It's obvious. You can't see anything there that would aid in legislation, can you? I don't see anything either. Those investigations have been going on for a long time)," he added.
Mabilog bared on Thursday, Sept. 19 an alleged plot to link former senators Mar Roxas and Franklin Drilon to illegal drugs during Rodrigo Duterte's time as president.
Mabilog—who has spent the last seven years in self-imposed exile in the United States (US)—appeared before the special four-way panel to share his harrowing experiences since 2016 when then-president Duterte included him in his dreaded "narco-list".
Quad-comm co-chairman, Abang Lingkod Party-list Rep. Joseph Stephen Paduano had Mabilog identify the "opposition senator and a former presidential candidate" that were supposed to be pinned down on the llegal drugs issue after the latter left them nameless in his affidavit.
Dela Rosa said that he never had any information regarding Roxas and Drilon and urged Mabilog to name the general who apparently told him about the so-called plot.
"Walang ganun, wala akong ganun na intensyon na ipapaturo siya wala akong nabalitaan na report na ganun ang gagawin (There was no such thing, I never had any intention of pinning anyone, and I didn't hear any report of that being done)," he said.
"Kaya mas maganda na si mabilog ang magsabi, sabi niya general ang nagsabi ng ganun para malaman natin kung totoo ang sinabi nya (It would be better if Mabilog can tell us directly if what the general said is true or not)," he added.