MANILA — Vice President Sara Duterte has requested the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to reschedule its hearing on her alleged death threat against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
The NBI had subpoenaed Duterte to clarify her controversial statement in which she claimed to have contacted an assassin to kill Marcos, House Speaker Martin Romualdez, and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, should an alleged plot against her succeed.
The NBI hearing, originally scheduled for Friday, was delayed after a House panel investigating her office’s use of confidential funds also postponed its session to allow Duterte to attend the NBI inquiry.
“Duterte was only informed late that her appearance before the House committee was canceled. She was unable to attend and requested a rescheduling,” said NBI Director Jaime Santiago.
The hearing has now been tentatively rescheduled for December 11. Santiago noted that the NBI will also investigate Duterte’s claim of a threat to her life, questioning her about the suspected individuals involved and whether there is any evidence to support her allegations.
“We will ask her who she suspects and whether there’s any evidence to back up her claims,” Santiago said.
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice stated that Duterte could face legal complaints for libel, defamation, and grave threats due to her remarks about the President.
Duterte has since clarified that her statement was taken out of context, stressing that the so-called “revenge” plot was conditional on her own death first. She reiterated that her comment was not a direct threat.
“Common sense should be enough for us to understand and accept that a supposed conditional act of revenge does not constitute an active threat. This is a plan without flesh,” Duterte explained.
The Vice President also expressed frustration that her use of the term “assassin” had been misinterpreted, saying, “Tossing the word ‘assassin’ into this issue makes things even more terrifying—especially because I never used that term during my recent consternation against the Marcos administration’s failure to serve the Filipinos while it masterfully persecutes political enemies.”