MANILA, Philippines — Former Senator Leila de Lima has strongly condemned Vice President Sara Duterte for allegedly threatening to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during what she described as a “mega meltdown.”
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), de Lima also accused Duterte of using the incident as part of a “political drama” orchestrated by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) to distract from the controversial issue of plunder involving confidential funds.
De Lima, a vocal critic of former President Rodrigo Duterte — the father of the current vice president — has long opposed the elder Duterte’s brutal war on drugs.
She was imprisoned for nearly seven years on drug charges, all of which were eventually dismissed by the courts due to lack of evidence.
“What to do with a VP who openly threatens murder on a sitting President and his wife in a mega meltdown?” de Lima wrote on Saturday. “Under ordinary circumstances, impeachment.”
Former Senator Leila de Lima accused Vice President Sara Duterte’s office of orchestrating a political drama to deflect attention from the ongoing controversy surrounding the alleged misuse of confidential funds by the Office of the Vice President (OVP).
De Lima took to social media, stating, “But more than the ordinary, this is political drama staged by the OVP to divert the issue from its plunder of confidential funds.”
She further criticized the situation, saying, “When it comes to stealing, it’s absolute. But when asked to explain, there are always excuses.”
What to do with a VP who openly threatens murder on a sitting President and his wife in a mega meltdown? Under ordinary circumstances, impeachment. But more than the ordinary, this is political drama staged by the OVP to divert the issue from its plunder of confidential funds.… https://t.co/JX5Sg87sX3
— Leila de Lima (@AttyLeiladeLima) November 23, 2024
The accusations came after a press conference held Friday night by Vice President Duterte and her chief of staff, Zuleika Lopez.
The two expressed outrage over an order to transfer an OVP undersecretary to the Correctional Institution for Women.
Lopez had been ordered detained at the House of Representatives after being held in contempt during a hearing investigating alleged misuse of public funds within the OVP under Duterte’s leadership.