(UPDATES) VICE President Sara Duterte on Friday fired a scathing broadside at President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., accusing him of dragging the country into hell and threatening to dig up the remains of his father and toss them into the West Philippine Sea.
In a two-hour press briefing, Duterte lashed out at the Marcos family, saying she felt “used” after teaming up with Marcos for the 2022 election, which they won by landslide.
“It’s not my fault that we are on this road to hell,” Duterte said. “That’s why I left the administration [because] I did not like what I was hearing there; I did not like what I was seeing there.”
SARA SCORNED Vice President Sara Duterte lets out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. She threatened to dig up the remains of the incumbent’s father and namesake Ferdinand Sr. at the Libingan ng mga Bayani and throw them into the West Philippine Sea and said she relayed this to Sen. Imee Marcos.
PHOTO BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
The Duterte and Marcos families have had a very public falling out as both attempt to shore up their rival support bases and secure key positions ahead of the midterm elections next year and presidential polls in 2028.
The remains of President Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. were laid to rest at the Libingan ng Mga Bayani in 2016 after then-president Rodrigo Duterte, Sara’s father, dismissed public criticism that the long-deceased dictator did not deserve the honor.
Duterte had relayed the exhumation threat to the incumbent president’s elder sister, Sen. Imee Marcos, and warned their family to stop harassing her.
“One of these days, I will go there. I will get the body of your father and throw it in the West Philippine Sea,” she said.
Marcos’ spokesman Cesar Chavez said Malacañang had no comment on the vice president’s remarks.
Duterte is facing impeachment threats in the House, led by Marcos’ cousin Martin Romualdez, who is also expected to run in 2028.
She quit her Cabinet post of education secretary in June after relations between the two families reached breaking point.
Duterte recalled how the “Uniteam,” her successful campaign partnership with Marcos, was formed in 2021 when she reiterated that she was not going to run as president in 2022.
After she filed her candidacy for Davao City mayor, Duterte said Imee Marcos urged her to run for vice president, believing her brother would lose the Visayas vote to then-vice president Maria Leonor Robredo.
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Vice President Sara Duterte let out a mouthful against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his capability to run a government in a two-hour press conference in her office in Mandaluyong City on Oct. 18, 2024. PHOTOS BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE
Duterte said she only agreed to run for vice president after she convinced her brother, Sebastian Duterte, to run as Davao City mayor.
After they won, she said she wanted to head the Department of National Defense to help Marcos in the anti-insurgency campaign.
Marcos named her the Department of Education secretary instead.
Duterte also said she will support any official of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) who will attend the House Blue Ribbon Committee hearings on the alleged misuse of the OVP’s confidential funds.
She added that she was ready to join them in detention if they are going to be charged with contempt.
The committee issued subpoenas to OVP officials led by its chief of staff, Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez, and assistant chief of staff, Assistant Secretary Lemuel Ortonio, after they failed to attend the hearings for the third time.
“If you do not want to attend, I will support you. If you want to attend, I will also support you. I will not force you to do what you want to do. You decide for yourself and then what path you will take. I will support you on that,” Duterte said.
Some members of the House criticized Duterte’s tirade at the President as “a reflection of her own leadership failures.”
“It’s Vice President Duterte, not President Marcos, who has failed as a leader. She mismanaged public funds and let the Department of Education (DepEd) fall apart under her watch. The country’s disastrous performance in the PISA (Program for International Student Assessment), showing a five- to six-year lag in learning competencies, is a direct result of her failed leadership,” Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr. said.
House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe said Duterte should instead own up to her own leadership failures instead of attacking others.
“The truth is simple: President Marcos is leading with strength, while Duterte is running from accountability,” Dalipe said.
Also on Friday, a coalition of about 50 leaders representing various alliances and multi-sectoral groups launched the People’s Alliance for Democracy and Reform (Pader ng Demokrasya) at the Quezon Memorial Circle to solidify support for President Marcos.
The launch event attracted a diverse group of supporters, including grassroots activists, local business leaders, and representatives from civil society organizations.
Leading the event was Jose Maria Goitia, the lead convenor of the alliance, who described the event as a “significant political gathering.”
“Today, we are here not just to declare our support for President Marcos but to unify our voices in advocating for democratic processes and reform initiatives that truly serve the Filipino people,” said Goitia.
He underscored the importance of collaborative governance and the need for a proactive approach to the nation’s challenges.
A manifesto by the coalition leaders to express their support for programs aimed at revitalizing the post-pandemic economy, particularly initiatives designed to stimulate job creation and support small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
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