By Genalyn Kabiling Malacañang is leaving it up to the government lawyers to handle the case involving Senator Antonio Trillanes IV. Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said Trillanes merely wants publicity about his predicament but the Palace has other important matters to attend to such as curbing inflation. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque
(MANILA BULLETIN) "May publicity lang po si Senator Trillanes, dahil gusto niya iyong publicity na iyan. In fact, tumira na siya sa senate, para perpetually nagpe-press conference siya doon ," Roque said during a Palace press briefing. "Pero ang katotohanan po, hindi naman po iyan pinapansin, napakalaki po ng gobyerno, ilang abogado lang ang nagha-handle niyan. So hayaan na po natin ang mga abogadong mag-handle niyan ," he said. Roque said he was even willing not to talk about Trillanes in his press conferences at the Palace. "Kung gusto ninyo huwag na nating pag-usapan ever si Trillanes dito I will never have any objection. Maybe we should follow that. No more questions about Trillanes henceforth," he said, reacting to allegations the government was the one giving Trillanes publicity. The Makati regional trial court recently granted the motion of the Department of Justice to order the arrest of Trillanes over a rebellion case following the revocation of his amnesty. Trillanes, who has contested the legality of President Duterte's amnesty recall, is currently out on bail. A separate DOJ motion for Trillanes’ arrest is pending before another Makati court on the coup charges filed against him. Roque earlier said Trillanes was not a victim of political persecution but a recipient of political gift. He said the senator loves the limelight ever since his amnesty was revoked. Amid calls from some groups to let the Supreme Court decide on the constitutionality of the presidential proclamation on the amnesty revocation, Roque maintained that they would defer to the decision of the regional trial court on matters related to Trillanes for now. He acknowledged that the Supreme Court was the final interpreter of the Constitution but "never a trier of facts." "The Supreme Court is the final interpreter of the Constitution and the laws of the land but we have to comply with the hierarchy of courts, and the Supreme Court in denying the request or the prayer for TRO and preliminary injunction filed by Senator Trillanes said that there are issues of fact that must be ventilated in the RTC," he said. "So tama lang po na ngayon, ang balitaktakan ay nasa lebel ng regional trial court, bahala na po ang mga abogado ni Senator Trillanes kung anong gagawin nila from the regional trial court," he added. On whether the military could start the court martial proceeding against Trillanes, Roque said: "The answer is they could but the President has said, he will abide with decisions of the regional trial court.”