VP Sara’s “God Save the Philippines” quip chided by House

Screengrab from Vice President Sara Duterte’s press briefing

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Vice President Sara Duterte appeared at a press conference on Friday, February 7, two days after being impeached by the House of Representatives.

“Ang tanging masasabi ko na lamang sa puntong ito ay, God save the Philippines (What I can say at this point is, God save the Philippines),” Duterte said, reading her statement during the press conference held in her office in Mandaluyong and broadcast over her social media channel.

The vice president was impeached by the House on charges of corruption, misuse of public funds, bribery and high crimes including threats she made on President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and his family.

Duterte didn’t go into much details about the pending impeachment trial in the Senate. She said it was overwhelming but she has yet to meet her legal team to discuss the case. She added that there were lawyers offering their services, including her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte.

VP Sara discussed instead, following her “God save the Philippines” quote, is the state of the country. She said the country is severely “left behind by time” and Mindanao is turning into chaos as ordinary wage earners “struggle to afford basic necessities like food, electricity, housing, water, and education for their children.”

She also appeared calm and welcoming to questions from reporters, even as her media staff constantly reminded reporters that the vice president would take questions.

Duterte’s parting words at her press conference when asked for a message for Valentine’s Day was, “Alam ‘nyo, mas masakit pa ang maiwan ng boyfriend o girlfriend kaysa ma-impeach ka sa House of Representatives (It’s more painful to have a breakup tan being impeached).“

Downplaying

Members of the House of Representatives believe that the vice president’s statement and demeanor downplay the seriousness of the issues raised against her.

“Save your prayers. What the Philippines needs saving from is the kind of governance that treats public funds like a personal ATM,” said Arlene Brosas, Gabriela Women Party-list Representative and Makabayan senatorial candidate, who endorsed the second impeachment complaint against Duterte.

“Let’s not forget why this impeachment happened in the first place: the questionable use of confidential funds, the blatant lack of transparency, and the refusal to be held accountable. While ordinary Filipinos struggle to make ends meet, millions of public funds are funneled into confidential expenses without explanation. Sino ang niloloko mo? (Who are you fooling?),” Brosas added.

“If anyone should be saying ‘God save the Philippines,’ it’s the people suffering from her and her family’s corruption, incompetence and impunity,” said Rep. Perci Cendaña from Akbayan Party-list, who endorsed the first impeachment complaint.

A joint statement from Taguig Rep. Amparo Maria Zamora, Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Raul Angelo Bongolan, La Union Rep. Paolo Ortega and Zambales Rep. Jefferson Khonghun said the vice president’s statement was defensive.

“Vice President Sara Duterte’s press conference on Friday, February 7, was meant to downplay the seriousness of the impeachment complaint against her. Her statement, lacking substance and punctuated by vague, defensive quips, failed to address the grave allegations against her. She did not offer a direct rebuttal to the charges but instead framed the impeachment as a premeditated effort,” the lawmakers said.

215 House members, including 41 from Mindanao, signed the impeachment complaint last Tuesday, but 25 more legislators including two more from Mindanao signed in the impeachment in the past three days.