Malacañang has fired back at Vice President Sara Duterte, accusing her of neglecting her duties and frequently traveling overseas while still enjoying what it described as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s restraint and respectful treatment.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro issued the scathing response after Duterte claimed that although she had no personal problem with Marcos, she considered him a “weak leader.”
For Castro, the Vice President’s own statement supposedly proved that Marcos had never mistreated her—either personally or in her capacity as the country’s second-highest official.
“The Vice President herself admitted that the President never treated her badly as a person or as Vice President,” Castro said in Filipino.
“In fact, even when she is not working and is always abroad, you do not hear President Marcos publicly criticizing her,” she added.
Castro then questioned why Duterte had allegedly turned her political conflict with the administration into a deeply personal crusade.
She revived the controversy surrounding Duterte’s previous remarks about allegedly arranging for someone to kill Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez should she herself be killed.
“Why did the Vice President make her anger personal?” Castro asked. “Why did she have to speak to someone supposedly willing to carry out an order to kill the President, the First Lady, and former Speaker Romualdez?”
The Palace official also rejected Duterte’s portrayal of Marcos as an incapable leader presiding over a nation in chaos.
Instead, Castro turned the accusation against the Vice President and her allies, suggesting that they were the ones fueling political instability.
“She wants the public to believe that the President is unable to lead and that the country is in chaos,” Castro said.
“But who is really creating the chaos? Who is allegedly planning destabilization? Is it not their group because they want to take the President’s position?”
The latest exchange marks another escalation in the bitter feud between the Marcos and Duterte camps, whose once-powerful political alliance has collapsed into open accusations, threats, and an increasingly hostile fight for public support.
With neither side showing signs of backing down, the clash is no longer merely about leadership styles. It has become a full-blown battle over loyalty, accountability, and who should be blamed for the turmoil shaking the country’s political establishment.
