Malacañang has responded sharply to Vice President Sara Duterte’s recent remarks criticizing the country’s leadership, with Palace Press Officer Claire Castro turning the focus on Duterte’s own record as a former education secretary.
In a press briefing Friday, Castro challenged Duterte’s comments during the PDP-Laban Miting de Avance, where the vice president spoke about the nation suffering the “consequences” of choosing the wrong leader. Castro argued that Duterte’s tenure at the Department of Education (DepEd) was marked by mismanagement, highlighting unresolved issues during her leadership.
“So, at that time, nakikita natin kung papaano nga ba napabayaan ang education sector dahil 1.5 million DepEd laptops stuck in warehouses since 2020 at hindi pa niya ito nagawan ng paraan bilang namumuno sa DepEd noon,” Castro said.
Castro also pointed to spoiled milk and moldy Nutribun worth P5.7 billion, which could have benefited public school students, as well as the discovery of “ghost students” that resulted in the recovery of P65 million under the leadership of Education Secretary Sonny Angara, who replaced Duterte in 2024.
“So, hindi po ba siya ang problema ng bansa o isa sa mga problema ng bansa?” Castro asked, emphasizing her criticism.
Duterte, who previously served as DepEd chief under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., resigned from the position and has since become an outspoken critic of the administration. In her speech, she described the current administration as being led by someone who “does not understand the daily struggles of Filipinos” and is “incapable of making decisions for the people’s benefit.”
“In the past months, my name and my family’s name have been dragged through the mud. I have repeatedly said this before, and I will say it again now—I am not the problem of this country,” Duterte declared.
