The Philippine Justice Ministry today accused the country's Vice President, Sara Duterte, of being the "mastermind" of a plot to assassinate the Philippine President, giving her five days to respond to a subpoena.
Sara Duterte was ordered to explain herself after a press conference this weekend, in which she said she had ordered that Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos be killed if she herself were assassinated.
"The government is taking steps to protect our legally elected President," Assistant Secretary of Justice Jesse Andres assured during a press conference today.
"The premeditated conspiracy to assassinate the President, as announced by the mastermind, as she herself admitted, will now have legal consequences," Andres said.
Speaking to the press an hour later, Duterte said he intended to respond to the subpoena.
"I will be happy to answer any questions you may have, but you should also answer my questions," Sara Duterte said.
In his first public comment on the case, President Marcos vowed to “defend himself” against a threat he called “disturbing.”
The Marcos-Duterte alliance, which took office in 2022, has collapsed as next year’s midterm general elections approach.
A few months ago, former President Rodrigo Duterte, Sara Duterte’s father, accused Marcos of being a “drug addict,” while Marcos claimed the following day that his predecessor’s health was deteriorating due to prolonged use of fentanyl, an opioid. Neither provided evidence for their allegations.
Sara Duterte, who is facing impeachment proceedings, said during an insult-filled press conference on Saturday that she had been the target of assassination threats and that she had ordered a member of her security team to kill the president if the plan succeeded.
In addition to President Marcos, he requested that, in the event of his death, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and the President's cousin, Martin Romualdez, Speaker of the House of Representatives, also be assassinated.
A few hours later, the presidential palace communications service said it had transmitted "this active threat to the presidential security command so that it can immediately take the necessary measures."
"This type of criminal attempt should not go unanswered. As a democratic country, we must respect the law," Marcos said today.
"The vice president is not immune from prosecution. She can be the target of any criminal or administrative investigation," said Jesse Andres, adding that the subpoena was being issued.
The official said a manhunt was underway to find the alleged assassin hired by Sara Duterte.
No comments:
Post a Comment