Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro pushed back against Vice President Sara Duterte’s remarks questioning the state of the Philippines’ economic recovery.
During a press briefing on Friday, November 14, Castro acknowledged that the country’s economic growth has indeed been affected by natural calamities and corruption issues.
However, she stressed that these problems did not begin under the current administration.
“Ang korapsyon na ito ay hindi lang sa panahon ngayon. Panahon pa po no’ng nakaraang administrasyon. Hinahanap pa po ang 33.5 bilyon na patungkol po sa flood control master plan sa Cebu. Isa pa po ito sa dapat imbestigahan. Nakaka-cause din po ito sa ating ekonomiya,” Castro said.
She added, “Maraming anomalya na dapat nating malaman. Pati ‘yong mga ghost projects na inamin naman ng dating Pangulong [Rodrigo] Duterte.”
According to Castro, the current administration is now cleaning up the mess allegedly left behind.
“But ang pangako ng Pangulo, gagawin ang lahat—pati ang econimic team—para mapaangat pa ang ekonomiya,” she added.
The remarks came after VP Sara earlier stated during the 90th Anniversary of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) at Makati Shangri-La, Manila, that those claiming the Philippine economy is recovering are “not in the right state of mind.”