MANILA - President Rodrigo Duterte’s top aide on Wednesday said he would quit his post if proven he had indeed intervened in the selection of critical equipment for the Philippine Navy’s two brand new frigates.

In a statement Wednesday, Special Assistant to the President Bong Go, who had denied hand in the transaction Tuesday, said his “...name has been unfairly dragged in this issue.”

“I am not privy to the frigate transaction of the DND. I have never seen the controversial document (white paper) that is alleged to have come from me, much less handed the same to [Defense Secretary Delfin] Lorenzana,” Go said in a statement.

“In fact, I will resign if it can be proven that I intervened,” he said.

Duterte himself had come to the defense of his top aide, slamming news site Rappler for its report that cited documents supposedly showing Go's intervention in the selection of the combat management system (CMS) for new P15.7-billion ships to be built by South Korean firm Hyundai Heavy Industries.

• Duterte slams Rappler anew, says it peddles fake news

Rappler, along with the Philippine Daily Inquirer, had reported that Go supposedly gave Lorenzana in January 2017 a white paper endorsing another South Korean company, Hanwha Thales, to provide the CMS for the Navy's brand new frigates.

The white paper supposedly criticized the Philippine Navy’s choice of CMS provider, Dutch firm Thales Tacticos, as it praised the capabilities of the Korean firm.

Lorenzana then reportedly gave the white paper to then Navy Chief Ronald Joseph Mercado, with a marginal note saying the document came from Go and that a rebuttal or report must be submitted to the President addressing the concerns raised.

The Rappler report said that a week after Go gave Lorenzana the letter, the presidential aide's office sent a letter to then Frigate Project Technical Working Group chairman Commodore Robert Empedrad, inviting him to Malacañang on January 20, 2017 to discuss the CMS selection.

Go, however, said he did not know about the invitation supposedly signed by his Undersecretary Christopher Lao.

Empedrad, nevertheless, submitted a report to Malacañang on January 23, 2017 vouching for the efficiency of the Thales Tacticos CMS.

The discussion over the selection of the CMS supposedly dragged for a year, culminating in the firing of then Navy chief Mercado, who preferred the Dutch CMS.

Lorenzana cited Mercado’s insubordination for his decision to fire the then Navy chief.

Go and Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque also stressed that the frigate project “was already a done deal in 2016,” during the time of then President Benigno Aquino III.

Roque said Hyundai Heavy Industries had won the contract for the construction of the frigates on June 9, 2016, days before Duterte took office.

“A contract has been given, awarded, that means it is futile to intervene. Na-award na po iyong kontrata, bakit pa manghihimasok si SAP Go? Manghihimasok lang po kayo kung wala pang Notice of Award at pupuwede pang ma-influence kung sino o kung kaninong produkto ang bibilhin ng gobyerno,” Roque said in a news conference in La Union.

Rappler, however, stood by its report, saying it was about how Go had intervened in the selection of the CMS, not the entire frigate contract.

“The accusation is that Go intervened in the selection of the supplier for the Combat Management Systems (CMS) of the two ships. The critical CMS, while part of the contract awarded to HHI, is to be provided by a secondary supplier, the choice of which is usually dictated by the technical specifications of the contract,” Rappler said in its report.

“The project is in an early stage – the Critical Design Review (CDR) – which is expected to list down, among others, the secondary suppliers. The CDR needs to be approved by the Philippine Navy before the actual work to build the ship begins.”

The defense department also defended Go, saying the white paper supposedly received by Lorenzana “was handed to him at the Palace, so he assumed that it came from Sec. Go,” who is also chief of the Presidential Management Staff (PMS).

“It should be noted that one of the tasks of the PMS includes the official routing and endorsement of documents to government agencies concerned, for appropriate action,” the Department of National Defense (DND) said in a statement.

It also admitted that the document originated from Hanwha.

“There was neither a hint nor guidance from the Palace or from Sec. Bong Go to influence the implementation of the project. There is a contract for the FAP (frigate acquisition project) which was crafted mainly by the Philippine Navy and it will be implemented strictly to the letter,” the DND said.