TRENDING: Chiz Escudero reacts to viral wine incident with Liza Marcos
First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos caught the attention of social media users after she took a sip from the wine glass of Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero during their Independence Day celebration on June 12.
Araneta-Marcos drew the ire of the public as a clip from the Vin d’Honneur event held in Malacañang made the rounds online.
The video showed the first lady entering the assembly room together with her husband, Pres. Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., before making her way to socialize with the other guests.
As Marcos Jr. conversed with House Speaker Martin Romualdez, Araneta-Marcos could be seen taking Escudero's drink from his hand to sip from it before handing it back to him.
WATCH: First Lady Liza Marcos grabs and sips from Senate President Chiz Escudero’s wine glass during yesterday’s vin d’honneur.
— Hana Bordey (@HanaBordey) June 13, 2024
Video from RTVM pic.twitter.com/VlVFGMZVlN
Their brief interaction has since become a trending topic online, with many criticizing Araneta-Marcos for appearing to treat Escudero as a waiter.
"Pinakita at pinaramdam niya na she treats Senator Chiz as a waiter. Arogante!" one user commented on X.
"Is this some kind of a power play na she just wants to show that she's 'the boss' or napagkamalan niya lang na waiter si Chiz? Pero recognizable naman si Chiz at tumingin pa nga siya kay Chiz eh. Wonder what they'll say about this? Ano kayang spin gagawin nila dito?" another wrote.
Others defended the first lady and reasoned that there could be something more to the incident than what was shown in the clip.
"That's how close she is to Chiz. She trusts Chiz. Your cup is my cup. My bread is your bread. A close-knit family," one user remarked.
Another commented, "Pwede naman siguro na dahilan [ay si Chiz] ang nag-abot kay First Lady Liza, kaya binalik sa kanya yung baso. Lahat na lang big deal sa inyo, bakit hindi nyo tanungin si Sen. Chiz kung big deal sa kanya yan?"
In a statement to reporters, Escudero addressed the incident and explained that he was just being a gentleman to the first lady.
"I consider waiting on a lady (first or otherwise) to be gentlemanly," the senator said.
"Maaaring sabihin ng iba na maka-luma o parang ‘under’ pero para sakin, hindi kailanman magiging maka-luma o di uso, ano man ang itawag ng iba, ang pagiging maginoo at pakikipag-kapwa tao," he added.
As of writing, Araneta-Marcos has yet to give a statement on the incident between her and the Senate President.
The Vin d’Honneur is an official reception hosted by the Philippine president during Independence Day celebrations and is attended by the country's leaders as well as foreign officials.