By Junex Doronio

MANILA — Former Customs intelligence officer Jimmy Guban has vowed to expose those behind the so-called “Davao mafia” and reveal the identity of the “queen” they seek to protect and install as president in 2028 at the proper time.

Guban, a Quad Comm whistleblower, requested more time to make his disclosures, citing ongoing threats against his family.

“Your Honor, this time I cannot give you the categorical answer because of security,” Guban responded when House Assistant Majority Leader and Zambales 1st District Rep. Jay Khonghun pressed him on the “save the queen” phrase he had mentioned earlier in Thursday’s tenth public hearing of the House Quad Comm.

While cautious about specifics, Guban indicated that he already knew the implementors involved, describing them as “hardcore killers” connected to the Davao group.

He suggested these individuals were working to “clean their names, their family, para lahat malinis,” hinting at a campaign to protect certain interests by any means necessary.

Earlier in the hearing, Guban accused the “Davao mafia” of orchestrating his downfall and that of others as part of a larger scheme “to save the queen in order to become the next president.”

During Khonghun’s questioning, Guban hesitated to provide further details, particularly about whether he was implicating the Duterte family, despite his earlier readiness to discuss the alleged network.

When Khonghun asked directly, “Mr. Jimmy Guban, yes or no lang, pamilya Duterte ba ‘yung tinutukoy mo?”

“Sorry, Your Honor, maybe next time,” Guban replied.

Guban recounted the ongoing threats to his family’s safety. “In fact, empleyado ng isang kongresista dito sinusundan ‘yung aking anak,” he said.

“‘Yung ex-Army, na kaibigan kong mga ex-Army, kinukontak nila not to be our security,” he added.

Guban also shared that a businessman from Davao had recently threatened to kidnap his son.

“There was also a call from a Davao negosyante, threatening my son that he will be kidnapped,” he said.

Despite these threats, Guban committed to revealing the full extent of the alleged corruption when he feels secure enough to proceed.

“Maybe, Your Honor, if I am already prepared dahil ilalabas ko ‘yan kahit with matrix and other sketches,” he told the committee, as he emphasized the need to protect his family in the meantime.

Thursday’s hearing also featured a videoconference appearance by Police Col. Eduardo Acierto, whom Guban implicated in the 2018 shabu shipment during a Senate investigation.

Now, however, Guban asserted to the Quad Comm that he faced death threats and intense pressure to accuse Acierto falsely, describing both himself and Acierto as “victims” of the Davao mafia.

Guban said he could not contain his emotions—a mix of anger and relief—knowing that he and Acierto, both alleged victims of the “Davao mafia,” were still alive.

“Pasalamat po kami sa Diyos dahil pareho kaming buhay. Si [former Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency deputy director general] Col. [Ismael] Fajardo po namatay. Si Captain [Lito] Perote, si agent Ernan Abario na kasama ko sa Customs, patay. Dalawa rin ang namatay sa akin. Sa kanya ilan ang namatay dahil po diyan sa Davao mafia and their purpose [is] to save the queen in order to become the next President,” Guban said.

In a previous testimony last August, Guban named Davao City congressman and former presidential son Paolo Duterte; lawyer Manases Carpio, the husband of Vice President Sara Duterte; and former presidential economic adviser Michael Yang as alleged owners of the magnetic lifters used to smuggle shabu into the country in 2018.

The scandal surfaced when law enforcement seized two lifters with 355 kilos of shabu, while four other lifters—which reportedly contained 1.68 tons of shabu worth P11 billion—evaded capture, flooding the market and causing street prices to plummet.

ia/mnm