The Palace refuted Vice President Sara Duterte’s assertion that she was speaking as a “wife, mother, daughter, and sister” when she threatened the President’s life, arguing that her role as the country’s second-highest government official cannot be separated from her identity.
Anyone, regardless of position and circumstance, will be liable for any threat made against the President, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro added.
“Jinusustify niya ang sinasabing ‘Oplan Romanov’ kaya siya nagbanta sa Pangulo? Hindi natin maiwawaksi ang pagiging bise presidente niya sa pagiging nanay niya. Ang pagbabanta ay pagbabanta, sino ka man. Nagbanta ka sa Pangulo, kahit ikaw ay isang nanay, ikaw ay bise presidente, walang pagkakaiba ‘yun,” Castro said, addressing Duterte’s rejoinder to the fourth Article of Impeachment.
Moreover, Castro pointed out that the burden of proof for the so-called “Operation Romanov” supposedly targeting the Duterte clan rests with the vice president.
Previously, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) wrote to Duterte, offering to investigate the alleged death threats that were putting her and her family at risk. Castro noted during the conference that Duterte did not take them up on this offer.
“Sino ba ang nagbanggit ng Oplan Romanov? Hindi po ba nasa partido ng bise presidente, hindi po ba siya ang dapat na magbigay ng mga ebidensya patungkol dito at hindi ang Palasyo? Siya po ang magbigay ng mga detalye para magkaroon ng tamang pag-iimbestiga,” Castro said.
“Binigyan siya ng pagkakataon, sinulatan siya ng NBI para malaman ang sinasabing ‘death threats’ sa kanya at sa kanyang pamilya. Pero hindi siya tumugon,” she added.
She explained that the executive branch, under which the NBI operates, can do nothing if there is nothing to investigate, with the accuser providing no details about this supposed threat.
During Wednesday’s impeachment trial, Defense Attorney Mark Vinluan told the court that Duterte was speaking not as a public official but as a wife, mother, daughter, and sister when she announced that she had contracted the services of an assassin to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife, First Lady Louise Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
“When VP Sara uttered those words, she was not responding as Sara Duterte the vice president but as Sara Duterte the wife, mother, daughter, and sister, who only sought to protect herself and her family. ‘Operation Romanov’ is in place and the threat against their lives is real,” Vinluan said.
Vice President Duterte claimed that “Operation Romanov” was a clandestine plot being orchestrated by the current administration, which ultimately seeks to eliminate the Duterte family.
