Manila: Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre said his department is not interested in investigating a perceived plot to destabilise the government of President Rodrigo Duterte while adding that support for the latter move is not that strong to merit attention.
“This group behind the scheme does not have enough support,” Aguirre said on Monday.
“They are making noise (to make it appear they are a large group). They can do this because they have the money,” Aguirre said as he referred to the US-based group, the Global Filipino Diaspora Council (GFDC), an association made up of immigrants from the Philippines.
In recent days, Philippine social media had been abuzz with a supposed plot by the GFDC, through its Filipino-American leader, Loida Nicholas-Lewis, to tarnish the image of Duterte abroad.
Nicholas-Lewis had exercised considerable influence under previous Philippine administrations, particularly that of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and President Benigno Aquino III.
Nicholas-Lewis is supposedly supporting Vice President Leni Robredo — who of recent has not been in good terms with the Duterte administration — to replace the incumbent.
Emails exchanged ostensibly between Nicholas-Lewis and her subordinate supposedly point to a scheme by the Filipino-American businesswoman to undermine the current administration.
The actual emails were posted on the internet and had been referred to as “Lenileaks” in reference to “WikiLeaks,” the controversial declassified personal exchanges involving security matters of the US government.
For her part, Nicholas-Lewis said she was just airing her views and doing her part as a Filipino when she tried to lobby support for Robredo.
“At least one out of every eight Filipinos lives overseas. Our remittances are a major boost for the Philippine economy. Just because we are Overseas Filipinos (OFs) does not mean that we have lost our right to be involved in or speak out on developments in our home country,” she said in a Facebook post.
“Like myself, many of us are dual citizens and therefore retain our full rights as Filipinos. It is therefore wrong to disparage or demean comments from overseas Filipinos. We have a right, even a duty, to be involved in our homeland and participate as much as we can in its politics,” she added.
Aguirre said that the National Security Agency could have a look into the matter, but in so far as he is concerned, he said that Nicholas-Lewis and the GFDC is not violating any Philippine law with their actions at this point.
“There is nothing wrong with it, nothing wrong to dream,” Aquirre said.
Aside from being a lobbyist and supporter to previous administrations, Nicholas-Lewis, who funded several foundations in the Philippines, is CEO of Beatrice TLC, a multinational food company with over $2 billion (Dh7.34 billion) in assets.
