Opposition infighting? Trillanes hits Aquino as Hontiveros urges focus

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

February 18, 2026 | 3:34pm

MANILA, Philippines — The extrajudicial killings (EJKs) may be driving a wedge between opposition leaders after Sen. Bam Aquino’s recent statement on former president Rodrigo Duterte ruffled some feathers.

In a media interview, Aquino said that ideally, Duterte would be tried in Philippine courts over the EJKs, not the International Criminal Court. Former senator Antonio Trillanes criticized Aquino, despite running under the same opposition alliance in 2022.

Trillanes was one of the parties who filed a case against Duterte for crimes against humanity.

The former senator called the matter personal to him, being one of those who took care of witnesses and searched for evidence.

“Siyam na taon ang inantay ng mga pamilya ng mga biktima habang ang mga nagbibida-bida ngayon na may malasakit kuno sa mga biktima ay wala namang ginawa nung kasagsagan ng EJK. Para maliwanag, Sen. Bam, kung talagang naniniwala kang dapat dito litisin ang mga EJK cases, kinasuhan mo ba sa local courts si Digong at iba pang co-perpetrators nung mga panahong iyun?” Trillanes said in a Facebook post.

(Nine years, the families of the victims have been waiting, while those now playing as main characters who supposedly sympathize with the victims did nothing during the height of EJKs. To be clear, Sen. Bam, if you really believe that the EJK cases should be tried here, did you file cases in local courts against Digong and his other co-perpetrators during that time?).

The former senator said that the justice system in the country is far from ideal, and he questioned Aquino on the purpose of his statement.

“Are you cozying up to the DDS (Diehard Duterte Supporters) at the expense of those who sacrificed? That's so insensitive and so unfair,” Trillanes said in Filipino.

Trillanes also alluded to an earlier disagreement with Aquino and former vice president turned Naga Mayor Leni Robredo, claiming that the two had stated they would not bring Duterte to The Hague.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, who has been touted as a possible standard-bearer of the opposition, has called for calm and focus.

“Ang masasabi ko lang, sa ngayon, 2026, nakatutok ang mga reform-minded at opposition forces sa pagbubuo ng mas mahigpit pang pagkakaisa para pumili ng aming mga kandidato whether by the end of the year or first quarter of next year,” Hontiveros said in a press briefing.

(All I can say is that, for now in 2026, the reform-minded and opposition forces are focused on forming a tighter alliance to pick their candidates by the end of the year or the first quarter of next year.)

Duterte is currently in The Hague awaiting trial for crimes against humanity over the mass EJKs that happened during his term. At least 6,000 suspects were killed in the drug war, with human rights advocates believing the number could be as high as 30,000.