Imee Marcos still champions ‘unity’ amid impeach raps vs VP Duterte
Sen. Imee Marcos–Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau
MANILA, Philippines — When asked about the impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte, presidential sister and Senator Imee Marcos said she still champions “unity.”
“I agree with President Bongbong that the impeachment should not proceed because that’d only bring trouble to the country. There’d really be a rift,” Marcos told reporters partly in Filipino on Friday.
“For me, of course, I was the one behind Uniteam. Somewhat, I’m still championing it. Even though I now have grievances and I’m being called out, I’m still championing it,” she added in Filipino.
“Unity” was the root word of “Uniteam,” the name of the alliance built by Marcos and Duterte to win their landslide victory in the 2022 elections. The alliance has since soured.
The political parties and sectoral groups behind the three cases against Duterte held rallies on Friday to call on the House to act on the complaints filed against her for alleged misuse of public funds.
Article continues after this advertisementBoth she and her brother previously and repeatedly expressed opposition to the impeachment efforts.
Article continues after this advertisementREAD: Marcos still firmly against VP Duterte’s impeachment – Palace
“Affordable food, many jobs. Let’s focus on that instead. Let’s not quarrel. 2028 is still so far away,” Marcos said in Filipino, referring to the next presidential election.
“Oh, the ambitious ones there making a mess, can we put a stop to this first? There’s so many issues,” she stressed.
READ: VP Duterte: Romualdez is the only person who wants to kill me
READ: Palace tags Duterte declaration to run in 2028 ‘too premature’
Duterte reportedly declared that she was “seriously considering” running in the 2028 elections when she met with overseas Filipino workers groups in Japan over the weekend based on an exclusive interview posted by Sonshine Media Network International or SMNI in social media.
READ: Dela Rosa: Sara Duterte ‘in no rush’ to be president, it’s someone else
In her defense, ally and Senator Ronald Dela Rosa previously said she was not hurrying to gun for the presidency and that instead it was Speaker Martin Romualdez, whom the vice president accused of wanting her killed.
