MANILA, Philippines – Tumangging magkomento ang legal counsel ni dating Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte na si Nicholas Kaufman, kaugnay sa umano’y suspensyon ng common-law wife ng dating Pangulo na si Honeylet Avanceña, sa pagbisita sa International Criminal Court (ICC) sa The Hague, Netherlands.
Ito ay kasunod ni Avanceña na siya ay sinuspinde sa pagbisita kay Duterte sa detention center ng ICC.
Sa isang panayam, tinanong si Kaufman ng “legal basis” sa umano’y suspensyon ng visitation rights ni Honeylet sa ICC.
“For judicial reasons and out of respect for family privacy, I am not going to comment on the veracity of Honeylet Avanceña’s allegations concerning her presence not being desired at the ICC detention center,” ani Kaufman.
Kamakailan ay kinwestyon ni Honeylet na wala itong alam patungkol sa dating Pangulo.
Ayon naman kay Kaufman, mismong si Vice President Sara Duterte, ay “is fully qualified” upang husgahan kung paano ito makipag-ugnayan at magtrabaho sa kanyang mga kliyente.
“Honeylet Avanceña, so it would appear, is emotionally distressed for reasons on which, as I mentioned previously, I cannot elaborate,” ani Kaufman.
“As a consequence, she is making all sorts of wild allegations, which are being stoked by others,” giit pa niya.
“The simple fact of the matter is that the Vice-President, as a lawyer herself, is fully qualified to judge the quality of my engagement with and work for the former President.”
Sinabi rin ng legal counsel na wala itong internal disagreements sa mga responsable sa paghawak ng depensa ni Duterte.
Matatandaan na sinabi ni Avanceña sa interview nitong Biyernes, Agosto 1, na hindi na niya makikita ang kanyang asawa.
“Five minutes before our visitation time ended, someone there told me, he said that on July 19, during our phone conversation, I said something about the case. I said, I don’t know anything about the case.”
“He said I will be suspended. And this is exactly what the PRRD said: ‘You cannot do that.’ Then the following day, I had no more visits,” dagdag pa, at sinabing hindi man lamang siya nakatanggap ng anumang warning kaugnay sa suspensyon.
Iginiit ni Avanceña na wala siyang alam sa kaso ni Duterte dahil hindi ito inilalahad sa kanya ni Kaufman.
Direktahan din nitong kinausap ang legal counsel at sinabing, “I have not asked a single paper from you on whatever it is that you are doing. So I cannot talk about the case.”
Ayon kay Avanceña, posibleng nagalit umano si Kaufman matapos siyang manghingi ng opinyon mula sa iba pang mga abogado patungkol sa kaso ni Duterte.
“I told Mr. Kaufman, I said, I know I have nothing against you, but please do not deprive us of, you know, asking other people or asking legal opinions from other lawyers as well. We acknowledge you as his lawyer,’” paggigiit pa ni Avanceña.
“I have nothing against you. I know that’s where you got angry. You’re angry there for me. I know you are protecting your practice. I don’t know if you’re trying to prove something. But we, we are concerned about the life of this man,” pagpapatuloy nito. RNT/JGC
