San Jose del Monte Rep. Rida Robes —file photo
MANILA, Philippines — A lawmaker described Vice President Sara Duterte’s statement over the recall of her 75-member police security detail as “childish tantrums” and “theatrics” used to hide that she had more bodyguards than the country’s previous second-highest officials combined.
San Jose del Monte Rep. Rida Robes issued the statement on Monday after Duterte slammed Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Rommel Marbil for his alleged lies concerning the withdrawal of her police protection detail.
READ: Sara Duterte cries ‘political harassment’ as PNP security detail taken away
“Truth is often surrounded by a bodyguard of lies, says a famous saying. In the case of the VP’s childish tantrums against the move to reduce, by little, her garrison of guards, she has muddled the issue, supplanting facts with theatrics,” Robes said.
“The truth is her security contingent dwarfs the number of policemen assigned to cities. The COA (Commission on Audit) says so in its latter report,” she added.
Citing COA’s annual report 2022, Robes pointed out that 433 security personnel were deployed only for Duterte, which was higher by 455 percent compared to her predecessor’s (Vice President Leni Robredo) security detail.
“What is also undeniable is that she has a number of bodyguards more than all previous VPs of the land combined. Some VPs had a protective detail that could fit in a van. Hers would need three Airbus planes filled to the rafters,” Robes said.
“Volume is what distinguishes a protective detail from a private army, and her insistence to have a battalion of guards betrays her real motive,” the lawmaker said.
In a four-page open letter posted on her official Facebook page, Duterte said that PNP security was pulled out immediately after she resigned from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Cabinet, her comment on his State of the Nation Address, and after a video showing Marcos allegedly using illegal drugs circulated online.
She also claimed that no official request was made to the Office of the Vice President regarding the withdrawal of her security personal protection detail—contrary to Marbil’s assertions.