Former senator Leila de Lima criticized Vice President Sara Duterte for her controversial remarks about plotting to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife Liza Araneta-Marcos, and cousin Speaker Martin Romualdez, in what de Lima described as a “mega meltdown.”
On microblogging platform X, de Lima claimed the vice president’s statements were part of a “political drama” designed to divert attention from allegations of misuse of confidential funds by the Office of the Vice President (OVP).
“What to do with a VP who openly threatens murder on a sitting President and his wife in a mega meltdown?” de Lima posted. “Under ordinary circumstances, impeachment. But this is political drama staged by the OVP to divert the issue from its plunder of confidential funds.”
What to do with a VP who openly threatens murder on a sitting President and his wife in a mega meltdown? Under ordinary circumstances, impeachment. But more than the ordinary, this is political drama staged by the OVP to divert the issue from its plunder of confidential funds.… https://t.co/JX5Sg87sX3
— Leila de Lima (@AttyLeiladeLima) November 23, 2024
De Lima, who has long been a vocal critic of Duterte and her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, referenced the OVP’s alleged financial controversies, adding in Filipino: “Kung magnakaw, wagas. Kapag pinapaliwanag, andaming hanash” (When they steal, it’s shameless. But when they explain, there’s so much noise).
The remarks came after a late-night Zoom press conference on Saturday, Nov. 23, where Duterte and her chief of staff, Zuleika Lopez, denounced an order transferring an OVP undersecretary to the Correctional Institution for Women. Lopez had earlier been held in contempt during a House inquiry into alleged fund misuse.
During the press conference, Duterte claimed she had already instructed someone to execute the alleged plot if she were assassinated. “No joke, no joke. Nagbilin na ako,” she stated.
Malacañang swiftly reacted, calling the vice president’s comments an “active threat.” Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin referred the matter to the Presidential Security Command for investigation, emphasizing that any threat to the president’s life must be taken seriously.
