Malacañang pushed back against Davao City First District Rep. Paolo Duterte’s claim that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. would not have won the 2022 elections by a wide margin without Vice President Sara Duterte, saying the victory was the result of the entire UniTeam alliance.
Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro stressed that the Marcos-Duterte tandem campaigned as a unified ticket during the 2022 elections.
“Unang-una, UniTeam sila. Hindi mo puwedeng sabihin na ito ay dahil lamang kay Pangulong Marcos Jr. o dahil lamang kay Bise Presidente. UniTeam, ibig sabihin nagkaisa,” Castro said during a Palace briefing on Monday.
Castro was responding to remarks made by Rep. Duterte, who said his sister played a decisive role in delivering Marcos’ landslide victory in the last presidential race.
According to Castro, the administration’s mandate should not be credited to a single individual.
“Ngayon, bakit ibinibigay lamang sa Pangulo ang mandato? E, Pangulo po siya. Pangalawa, sino po ang nagtatrabaho at sino po ba ang nagbabakasyon,” she said.
The Palace official also questioned who has been consistently attending to the needs of Filipinos and who has frequently been abroad.
The exchange came after President Marcos, in an interview with Bloomberg, said he does not regret running alongside Vice President Duterte in 2022. Rep. Duterte agreed with the President’s statement but maintained that Marcos would not have secured such a large margin of victory without his sister’s support.
Castro also challenged the lawmaker to follow news reports and government briefings to stay informed about the administration’s accomplishments.
“Mas maganda po sana manood siya ng press briefing, mga news, mainstream, state-owned media,” she said.
“Lumalabas po kasi na hindi siya updated, hindi nagbabasa, hindi nanonood ng news, nakakaawa naman, nabubuhay sa dilim, nabubuhay sa fake news, nabubuhay sa sariling imahinasyon,” Castro added.
The Palace official made the remarks in response to Rep. Duterte’s challenge for President Marcos to enumerate reforms implemented under his administration that have improved the lives of Filipinos.
The congressman earlier urged the President to present concrete accomplishments rather than rely on “slogans, scripted applause, or standing ovations” during the upcoming State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Castro, however, said there is no need to wait for the President’s annual address to learn about the administration’s initiatives.
“Kung manonood lamang siya ng press briefing, malalaman na niya kung ano ang ginagawa ng Pangulo,” she said.
