MANILA, Philippines — A lawyer of a former aide of then Davao City mayor and now Vice President Sara Duterte revealed on Thursday that she allegedly tried to stop him from coming out with his exposé against her. The apparent attempts to stop Ramil Madriaga from saying his piece before the proper authorities were made when the vice president visited him twice at his detention at Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan, Taguig City where he has been detained for kidnapping, his lawyer, Raymond Palad, alleged. In a press conference at a Quezon City restaurant, Palad revealed that when she visited him the first time at the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) Annex 2 detention facility in Bicutan, she allegedly promised him to work for the dismissal of his case. Madriaga has been facing a kidnapping case before the Manila Regional Trial Court which stemmed from the alleged abduction of two Chinese in 2022. Duterte allegedly made a second visit on Oct. 19, 2925 but she failed to meet Madriaga after he refused to talk to her, Palad told reporters. Palad also revealed that there were feelers from certain individuals who were talking to his family to persuade him to withhold his expose’. Palad said, however, that it was Madriaga’s "own will" that prompted him to come forward and “tell all.” In fact, Palad said his client has submitted a notarized affidavit and letter to Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla, asking him to initiate an investigation against the vice president. Madriaga, in the same affidavit, alleged that drug dealers and Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators were funding the campaign Inday Sara Duterte Is My President (ISIP) Pilipinas, Palad said. “My client, Madriaga, had long planned to reveal his exposé and even wrote Sen. Risa Hontiveros in March 2024 but he was not given the opportunity to speak with the senator,” Palad said. “He also wrote to the Quad Committee in Congress but was ignored,” Madriaga’s counsel said. He said further that they even submitted Madriaga’s mobile phone for forensic examination, which allegedly contained evidence against the vice president, including records of cash deliveries and information involving Chinese militia activity in Mariveles, Bataan. During the same press conference, Palad mentioned about the vast farmland in Bagac, Bataan which was said to have been illegally acquired by ex-Palace spokesman Harry Roque. “Madriaga’s efforts to assist the affected residents, who accused Roque of being a landgrabber, eventually led to his imprisonment,” Palad said. He (Madriaga) once sought help from Duterte, at the time when she was the Davao City mayor, but it fell on deaf ears due to her closeness to Roque, the lawyer said. What came next was fabricated kidnapping charges that resulted in Madriaga's detention, Palad added.