Trillanes: Firm of VP Sara's husband got P319M from China

 MANILA, Philippines — A food company partly owned by Vice President Sara Duterte's husband took in more than P319 million from China, former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV alleged on Friday, October 2.

Trillanes made the claim at a press conference a day after House prosecutors dropped him as a witness in Duterte's impeachment trial. He said he had asked to be dropped to relieve the prosecution of any more pressure and promised to disclose today everything he would have shared before the senator-judges.

The former senator argued the flow of Chinese funds to companies with ties to the vice president had severe national security implications and on its own was enough to impeach and disqualify her from public office.   

"Dapat kilabutan po tayo dito... Bawal po iyan. Bawal tumanggap from a foreign government, especially high-ranking official ang vice president," Trillanes said. "Kapag hindi pa ba impeachable iyan, ewan ko nalang. Nagbubulag-bulagan tayo." 

(We should be terrified by this... That is illegal. Accepting money from a foreign government is prohibited, especially when the vice president is a high-ranking official. If that is still not impeachable, I don't know anymore. We are turning a blind eye.)

Duterte has denied all allegations of possessing unexplained wealth. In April, she accused Trillanes of resurrecting the same allegations he has leveled against her family since 2016, this time with a "machinery backing him." 

Citing official Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) records, Trillanes claimed the funds flowed from Chinese government-linked entities and corporations into Cale88 Foods Corp., a company tied to Duterte’s husband, lawyer Manases "Mans" Carpio.

SEC Director Gerardo Del Rosario testified during the impeachment trial that Carpio was an incorporator, director and shareholder of Cale88 from 2021 to 2024, and that his stake rose to 47.5% in 2024, before disappearing in 2025.  

Duterte herself had no interest in Cale88, but for Trillanes, that did not clear her of liability. "Dito sa atin, conjugal properties 'yan. 'Yung pagmamay-ari ng asawa, kailangan ideklara mo."  

Trillanes noted that Carpio divested from Cale88 in 2025, around the same time the first impeachment complaint was filed against the vice president.

Questioning the legitimacy of Cale88’s operations as a banana chip exporter, Trillanes highlighted what he deemed as red flags in the firm's SEC filings.   

For instance, Trillanes said Cale88's electricity bill averaged just P8,000 a month in 2023.

"Hindi 'yan pang-factory ng banana chips," he said. (That's not enough to run a banana chip factory.)

The company also reported no trade receivables or payables, meaning it bought and sold only in cash. "Parang merong banana cue stall. Pag nagbenta, cash. Pag bumili ng materials, cash din," Trillanes said. (It's like a banana cue stall. When it sells, cash. When it buys materials, cash too.)

According to Trillanes, Cale88 reported no sales in 2021 and P20,000 in 2022. Sales rose to P23 million in 2023 and then rose more than fivefold to P150 million in 2024. 

That year, the banana chips exporter paid P10,705 in income tax, listed no rank-and-file employees and ended the year with P400,294 in cash. Sales fell again in 2025, when it reported just two employees.

In all, Cale88 declared P208.49 million in sales, Trillanes said, while more than P300 million came into its accounts.

"Kahit sabihin natin, sige, worth P200 million na banana chips ang binili, pero P300 million ang idineposito?" he said. (Even if we say P200 million worth of banana chips were bought, P300 million was deposited?) 

Trillanes claimed the alleged China inflows would eventually be proven at the trial. 

On Thursday, lead prosecutor Rep. Jinky Luistro confirmed that AMLC records submitted to the court include summaries of remittances to Cale88 from China and other countries. She declined to give amounts, citing the the court's sub judice rule.

Trillanes also showed records that the Tapang at Malasakit Alliance for the Philippines Inc., a Davao City nonprofit Duterte founded, received P150 million from the Embassy of the People's Republic of China.

Duterte lists herself in her SALN as an incorporator of the group. Its trustees include Duterte, "Maria Laarni Cayetano," who Trillanes implied was Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano's wife, and "Jefry Tupas," whom Trillanes called her trusted staff. 

The group's financial statement, which was part of his presentation, shows the money was a donation to build 13 classroom buildings. 

The project was done under an agreement with the embassy and coordinated with the Department of Education in Davao City. The group received the P150 million in 2019 and disbursed the last P8.42 million in 2020.

The donation was a public event reported at the time by various news outlets. 

On Oct. 5, 2018, Duterte, then-Davao City mayor, led the groundbreaking at Agdao Elementary School with Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua. Zhao described the gift as appreciation for then-President Rodrigo Duterte's policy on China.   

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