VP Duterte told: If presidency was yours, why didn’t you run for it?

TENSION IN THE HOUSE Vice President Sara Duterte raises a point during her participation at a Nov. 25 hearing by the House committee on good government and public accountability. — HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Taguig 2nd District Rep. Amparo Maria Zamora has asked Vice President Sara Duterte why she did not pursue the presidency during the 2022 elections if she truly believed it was already hers.

In a press briefing on Monday, lawmakers from the House of Representatives’ Young Guns bloc were asked about the Vice President’s statements claiming that the presidency was hers already in 2022. It was her response to Zambales Rep. 1st District Rep. Jefferson Khonghun’s comment that the political mess started when Duterte was overly eager to be president.

Zamora said if that is the case, then Duterte should have sought the presidency in 2022.

“Why didn’t she run? If she had it in the bag, she should have run for it.  You know, I mean, it’s already 2025, right? Why say that now?  You should have run for it,” the lawmaker said in Filipino.

“Sorry, because, what was that statement for?” she added. “She filed to run for vice president, and now she’s our vice president. So that’s what it is.”

READ: ‘2022 presidency was mine already’ – VP Duterte

According to Zamora, the country’s history shows that “the presidency is a destiny,” and if Duterte is right, then it will be hers eventually.

Duterte on Saturday said the presidency was hers in 2022 as she was leading the presidential surveys and “everyone was united” for her candidacy

“But I gave it away because I felt I had to do some other things other than being president of the Republic of the Philippines,” she added.

Had Duterte participated in the presidential race, it would have been a three-way race at the top, as surveys predicted: between Duterte, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., and former Vice President Leni Robredo.

However, Duterte teamed up with Marcos under the Uniteam, resulting in one of the biggest electoral victories in the country’s history.

READ: Pulse Asia’s December survey: Marcos and Duterte-Carpio team is top choice

The Uniteam appears to have fizzled out, with the Marcos and Duterte camps embroiled in a word war.  In an online briefing last November 23, Duterte badmouthed Marcos, first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez.

Duterte also said that she already talked to someone about killing the three in case she got killed.

However, according to the Vice President, she should not be gaslighted into thinking that she is the reason behind all the political tensions.

“I was not the one who told them to open an investigation or inquiry in aid of legislation that is more likely a political persecution and harassment of OVP (Office of the Vice President) personnel, so they should not gaslight me into saying that I am the reason for this mess,” she said.

Duterte was referring to the House committee on good government and public accountability’s probe into fund misuse allegations in the OVP and the Department of Education (DepEd) under her watch.

Last November 25, it was revealed at the panel’s hearing that the special disbursing officers of OVP and DepEd left the disbursement of CFs to security officers — a move that 1-Rider party-list Rep. Ramon Rodrigo Gutierrez believes can be tantamount to “technical malversation.”

READ: Solon: SDO’s move to give up fund release role may lead to malversation

Aside from this, the COA issued a notice of disallowance on P73.2 million of the OVP’s P125 million CF for 2022.