Vice President Sara Duterte denied that she ordered vehicles to stop in a portion of Quezon City so that she could pass through traffic.
Duterte was reacting to a now-viral video showing a vlogger complaining about the sudden traffic along Commonwealth in Quezon City.
Sinarado ang isa sa pinaka busy na kalsada sa bansa dahil tatawid ang isang ViP? Grabe naman yan.
Sent to me by an ex-military man. pic.twitter.com/hybUl2vo9y
— Teddy Casiño (@teddycasino) October 5, 2023
The vlogger asked the policeman in the area and the latter said that a VP would be crossing the street, the vlogger then claimed it was VP Sara.
“I want to emphasize that neither I nor my office ever made any request for assistance from the OCPD to orchestrate such an action,” Duterte said.
“The claims in the video are not only misleading but also outright false. I strongly condemn any actions that disrupt the daily lives and well-being of our fellow citizens. My commitment to ensuring the welfare and convenience of the Filipino people remains unwavering,” she added.
The policeman identified in the incident has apologized to Duterte over the confusion he may have caused.
“We would like to apologize for the inconvenience we have brought to the motoring public due to the stopping of the traffic flow along Commonwealth westbound,” the Quezon Police District said.
The QCPD added that the said incident stemmed from a confusion and lapse in judgment of one of their policemen manning the traffic during that time.
“It appears that our policeman overreacted when he stopped the traffic for a few minutes, because of misleading information he overheard. He mistakenly heard the word VP hence, he decided to clear the traffic as a sign of courtesy and security, where in fact, based on records, VP Sara Duterte has no engagement in that particular area,” the QCPD said.
