Malacañang on Tuesday cast Senator Imee Marcos’ accusations against her brother, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., as a political ploy designed to weaken the administration, warning that the remarks were intended to undermine the Chief Executive and advance the senator’s own circle.
Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro, speaking in a radio interview, said the claims made by the senator—accusing the President and First Lady Liza Marcos of using illegal drugs—were crafted to discredit the country’s leader. “This is part of destabilization. Even though she did not say, ‘you should step down,’ that’s still her objective,” Castro said.
The Palace official questioned the senator’s motives and raised concerns over her affiliations. “Should the people still believe Senator Imee? Senator Imee seems to have an agenda regarding her allies and friends. Should the people still believe Senator Imee, a member of Team Itim?” Castro added, referring to a political bloc that had earlier received support from Vice President Sara Duterte.
Castro said the Palace was also puzzled by how Senator Marcos was able to deliver such remarks during an Iglesia Ni Cristo peace rally at Quirino Grandstand. “Sen. Imee’s slander is not surprising, but for her to tell such a lie, especially at an INC peace rally, is a bit surprising because that is not the INC’s agenda as far as I know. The INC leader allowed her to speak on stage, stating that the INC’s main agenda is to fight corruption, so maybe the INC was surprised too…I don’t know if the INC knows her script,” Castro noted.
She emphasized that the drug accusations were not new and argued that the President’s public demeanor contradicts the allegation. “You can clearly see from the President’s appearance, how he thinks, how he works…Who is acting like an addict now? The President is not having a meltdown. The President is not threatening lives. He looks very decent, so who is acting like an addict?” Castro asked.
Malacañang, through Communications Secretary Dave Gomez, also dismissed a circulating social media post that falsely attributed a response to First Lady Liza Marcos. “That is fake news,” Gomez said.
The dispute reached deeper into the Marcos family when House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos condemned his aunt’s claims, saying she had crossed a personal and moral boundary. “This is not the behavior of a true sister,” he said in a statement. He accused the senator of spreading “a web of lies” to destabilize the administration and push “her own political ambitions.”
Although he acknowledged her role in his early career, the lawmaker said there are limits. “That respect remains, which is why this will be the first and last time I will be speaking on this,” he said, noting that the accusations made during the senator’s INC appearance had gone too far.
In her speech that night, Senator Marcos also claimed she had not spoken to her brother for three years and accused the President, the First Lady, and their children of long-term drug use. She escalated the controversy further by daring the first family to take a hair follicle drug test, saying she would agree to undergo a DNA test in exchange.
The Palace quickly dismissed the challenge. “We will repeat, repeat, repeat – we will not give in to what the noisy ones say. This has been resolved a long time ago. I will repeat, repeat – the President is clean and the President will not give in to any incitement, incitement by destabilizers, incitement by obstructionists,” Castro said.
The senator’s tirade also drew reactions in the upper chamber. Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson said her public outburst was “un-Filipino,” stressing that family conflicts should have been kept private. Senate President Vicente Sotto III, meanwhile, downplayed worries about governance amid the controversy, saying, “I have only one statement. It could be the defining moment of her political career.”
