Malacañang has fired back at Vice President Sara Duterte over her remarks questioning the Marcos administration’s sincerity in addressing alleged corruption in flood control projects.
In an interview in The Hague, Netherlands, Duterte cast doubt on President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s creation of a fact-finding committee, saying that if the administration was truly serious, it could solve the issue in just “one day” and immediately name those involved.
During a Palace press briefing on Wednesday, September 3, Palace Press Officer Atty. Claire Castro blasted the Vice President’s statement.
“Isang araw lang matatapos na ang imbestigasyon? That is absolutely preposterous,” Castro said.
The Palace official also produced “receipts,” pointing to former President Rodrigo Duterte’s own admission back in November 2020 that “ghost projects” were rampant within the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
“Kung isang araw lang ito dapat imbestigahan, sana po ito ay na-suggest (ni VP Sara) sa kanyang ama dahil mismo ang dating Pangulong (Rodrigo) Duterte ay umamin na rampant ang ghost projects noon. This is November 2020 inilabas,” Castro stressed.
She then threw a sharp question at the Duterte camp:
“May nasibak bang secretary ng DPWH (ni Rodrigo Duterte)?” — a pointed reference to Senator Mark Villar, who served as DPWH secretary under the Duterte administration.
As of press time, VP Sara and the Office of the Vice President have yet to issue a response to the Palace’s counterattack.