Is Trillanes undermining Leni, Bam to make way for Risa?

With the 2028 presidential race now less than two years away, former senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV has drawn fresh lines inside the so-called opposition—this time targeting Sen. Bam Aquino in a way that inevitably puts former vice president and now Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo in the same frame.

On its face, the dispute centers on where cases against former president Rodrigo Duterte should be heard.

But by attacking Aquino and reopening his rift with Robredo, Trillanes has put another issue on the table: is he undermining the two to make way for Sen. Risa Hontiveros to become the opposition’s standard bearer?

The immediate trigger was Aquino’s remark that cases involving alleged extrajudicial killings during the Duterte administration should “ideally” be tried in Philippine courts, even as he said he respects the ongoing proceedings before the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In a February 18 Facebook post, Trillanes revisited a long-running claim that both Aquino and Robredo had told him in 2022 that they would not hand over Duterte to The Hague if Robredo had won.

“Last year, binash ako ng mga supporters ni Sen. Bam at VP Leni nung namention ko sa interview with Christian Esguerra na sinabi nila sakin na kung mananalo si VP Leni as president ay di nya ibibigay si digong sa The Hague. Ngayon, napatunayan na nagsasabi ako ng totoo dahil galing na mismo kay Sen. Bam,” he wrote.

“Siyam na taon ang inantay ng mga pamilya ng mga biktima… 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.

Months earlier, in an August 2025 interview, Trillanes publicly declared that Hontiveros would be his preferred candidate against Vice President Sara Duterte in 2028, saying he was “ruling out” Aquino and Robredo in his own assessment.

Aquino, for his part, said the killings must be addressed, that trials should “ideally” happen in Philippine courts, and that he respects the ICC process now underway. For Trillanes, however, even that qualified preference for local trials suggests a lack of firmness.

Hontiveros has said she is open to running if chosen by a united opposition and that the alliance aims to name its standard bearer by late 2026 or early 2027.

With Vice President Sara Duterte already declaring her presidential bid, the opposition is under pressure to show it can stand together.

Instead, Trillanes’ attacks on Aquino and Robredo only highlights cracks within their ranks.

While opposition figures trade barbs over past statements and publicly question each other’s positions, Duterte’s camp projects a more unified front as 2028 approaches.

In politics, perception matters—and right now, the contrast makes the opposition look divided and disorganized, while Duterte’s forces appear steady, aligned, and united.