MANILA, Philippines — The former head of the Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group (VPSPG) denied anew his alleged links to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGOs) and drug money as alleged by a key witness. The statement of Army Col. Raymund Dante Lachica comes after Ramil Madriaga, whom Vice President Sara Duterte sais was not part of her team, claimed that he received money from POGOs and drugs to be used in Duterte's 2022 campaign. This was stated in his affidavit released by Madriaga's lawyer, Raymund Palad. In a statement to The Manila Times, Lachica stressed that Madriaga's claims were "baseless." "These claims have been publicly repeated without credible evidence and were irresponsibly brought into the public arena before any competent authority had the opportunity to properly evaluate them," Lachica said. He added that serious accusations of criminal conduct should be handled with "responsibility and restraint." "Instead, these allegations were widely discussed in media platforms, creating a misleading narrative that wrongdoing had already been established. This kind of trial by publicity undermines fairness and damages reputations without due process," Lachica said. Lachica had filed a cyberlibel suit against Madriaga and Palad at Davao City Prosecutor's office last January.