THE National Security Council (NSC) said Tuesday it would assess reported financial inflows from China into a Philippine-based company associated with the family of Vice President Sara Duterte.
National Security Adviser Eduardo Oban Jr. said the NSC was alarmed over information presented during the impeachment proceedings because significant foreign financial flows could have national security implications.
“The NSC takes seriously the information presented during the impeachment proceedings regarding reported financial inflows from China into a Philippine-based company associated with the family of Vice President Sara Duterte,” Oban said in a statement.
He noted that the information presented should be properly examined through established legal processes.
“The NSC will look into the information presented and, as a matter of policy, continue to task the intelligence and investigative agencies and coordinate with relevant government institutions to assess the national security implications, if any, arising from the reported transactions,” he said.
This comes after Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura testified before the Senate impeachment court that Cale88 Foods Corp., a company linked to Duterte’s husband, lawyer Manases Carpio, received P319.33 million in inward remittances from China and Hong Kong.
Of the amount, P315.94 million came from mainland China and P3.39 million from Hong Kong, according to AMLC records presented during the impeachment trial.
Buenaventura testified that at least P4.4 billion in covered and suspicious transactions had been recorded under the bank accounts of Duterte and Carpio. Of this amount, P1.63 billion was classified as inflows and P1.3 billion as outflows, while P1.4 billion had undetermined inflows and outflows.
Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV had earlier alleged that more than P319 million from Chinese government and corporate sources entered Cale88 Foods and claimed the transactions raised national security concerns. The Duterte camp has denied the allegations.
Oban said the NSC’s assessment would determine whether the reported transactions have national security implications, if any, and would be undertaken in coordination with relevant government institutions.
