Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. has issued a stern warning to former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, telling him not to involve him in political maneuvers following remarks regarding Teodoro’s relationship with Vice President Sara Duterte.
In a social media post, Teodoro reacted sharply to comments made by Trillanes on political analyst Richard Heydarian’s podcast, where the former senator claimed the defense chief remains “very close” to Duterte despite their differing stances on China.
”WHATEVER GAME YOU ARE PLAYING TRILLANES—DO NOT INVOLVE SEC. TEODORO,” read the official post.
The warning follows Trillanes’ allegations that Duterte and her husband, Atty. Manases “Mans” Carpio, received hundreds of millions of pesos linked to Chinese government and corporate sources. Trillanes claimed that more than ₱319 million went to Cale88 Foods Corporation—a company associated with Carpio—while another ₱150 million allegedly went to the Tapang at Malasakit Foundation linked to Duterte.
The Chinese Embassy has dismissed the allegations as a fabricated narrative. Meanwhile, Trillanes urged Teodoro to investigate the transactions due to their potential national security implications.
Teodoro previously acknowledged the gravity of the claims, stating they would “raise serious implications for national security” if proven true, and urged Trillanes to surrender any evidence to law enforcement authorities for a formal investigation.