Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Tuesday filed plunder and graft complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman against former president Rodrigo Duterte and Senator Christopher “Bong” Go over alleged irregularities in government infrastructure contracts.
Also named as respondents were Go’s father, Deciderio Lim Go, owner of CLTG Builders, and his brother, Alfredo Armero Go, owner of Alfrego Builders.
Trillanes alleged that the companies of Go’s family members secured around ₱6.95 billion worth of government infrastructure projects from 2008 to the present, including about ₱816 million in contracts awarded during the Duterte administration through a joint venture between CLTG Builders and St. Gerrard Construction.
“The main plunderer here is Bong Go because he was the central figure who enabled these transactions through his relationship with Duterte,” Trillanes told reporters after filing the complaint.
Trillanes claimed the transactions involved nearly 200 Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) contracts, which he said violated the law prohibiting the awarding of government projects to immediate family members of public officials. He added that CLTG and Alfrego Builders were undercapitalized firms holding only a “B” contractor’s license and allegedly entered into joint ventures with triple-A companies to qualify for large government projects.
He also alleged that Go’s appointment as special assistant to the president allowed him to influence contract approvals during Duterte’s term, and that his family’s firms continued to benefit from such projects even after he became a senator.
Trillanes said he had previously filed a similar complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) during the Duterte administration, which was later forwarded to the Ombudsman but not acted upon.
The threshold for plunder under Philippine law is ₱50 million, with a 2016 Supreme Court ruling requiring identification of a main plunderer for conviction.
In response, Senator Go urged Trillanes to “stick to the truth,” reiterating that he has no involvement in his family’s businesses.
“Kung mayroon mang pagkukulang o mali, ako mismo ang magrerekomenda na kasuhan sila — kahit kamag-anak ko,” Go said in an interview.
Go maintained that the issue should focus on alleged anomalies in flood-control projects and stressed that any irregularities should be investigated by the Commission on Audit (COA) and the Ombudsman.
