VP Sara was on vacation while PH was being battered by Carina – solons

LAST DAY Vice President Sara Duterte takes a selfie with her successor at DepEd, Education Secretary Sonny Angara, and other education officials at the turnover ceremony. — File photo from LYN RILLON

MANILA, Philippines — Two lawmakers of the House of Representatives chided Vice President Sara Duterte after she criticized the national government’s alleged failure to fund the flood control program in Davao City.

Zambales Rep. Jefferson Khonghun and La Union Rep. Francisco Paolo Ortega mentioned Duterte’s trip to Germany during the onslaught of typhoon Carina.

READ: VP Duterte hits Marcos admin for neglecting Davao flood control

“Sino ba ang tinatawag ng mga netizens na ‘lakwatsara’ sa gitna ng malakas na ulan noong Carina? Hindi ba height ng irresponsibility yun? Ikaw ang second highest official of the land, tapos maglalakwatsa ka sa kasagsagan ng ulan at bagyo?” Khonghun asked.

(Who among them is being called ‘lakwatsara’ [which sounds similar to the Filipino slang for someone who frequently goes on vacations] during the height of typhoon Carina? Wasn’t that irresponsible for the second highest official of the land to go on hiatus amid the rains and a typhoon?)

“Tapos, wala ka na nga sa bansa hanggang ngayon, panay pa ang reklamo mo,” the lawmaker said.

(And then, you’re out of the country now and yet, you still keep on complaining.)

“Mapapa-‘look who’s talking’ na lang talaga ang mga taong makakarinig ng criticisms ni VP sa ating presidente. Nasaan ka noong kailangan ka ng mga mamamayan? Marked safe from Carina kasi nasa Germany? Sana all talaga,” he noted.

(The tendency is to think like, ‘Look who’s talking?’ Where were you when the people needed you? Marked safe from the typhoon because you were in Germany? We wish we were all in that situation.)

According to Khonghun, Duterte’s father, former President Rodrigo Duterte had six years to fund the flood control program nationwide, including in Davao City.

He recalled that a P51 billion fund was also allocated for the infrastructure projects of  Davao City Rep. Pulong Duterte during the last three years of his father’s term.

For his part, Ortega finds it “perplexing” to hear such statements from the vice president since she went on a trip to Germany amid the calamities brought by the bad weather.

He claimed that when Davao City experienced flooding last June, the Dutertes were “notably absent from the city,” because they “went to Tacloban City for an alleged political purpose.”

“This fact further complicates the VP’s position, suggesting a pattern of absence during critical times that necessitated leadership and prompt response,” Ortega said.

Last week, Duterte questioned why the master plan and feasibility study for flood control for Davao City, formulated during the time of her father’s administration, has yet to be funded.

The vice president did not mention anyone in her statement.

Duterte previously resigned from her position as a member of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s cabinet.

She did not attend his third State of the Nation address on July 22.