Malacañang: Rodrigo Duterte’s call for military to 'protect the Constitution' is 'selfish,' 'irresponsible'
Malacañang called on former president Rodrigo Duterte to “desist from being irresponsible as he has become” following his call for the military to “protect the Constitution” amid “fractured governance.”
“No motive is more selfish than calling for a sitting president to be overthrown so that your daughter can take over,” it said in a statement shared by the Presidential Communications Office on Tuesday, Nov. 26. “And he will go to great and evil lengths, such as insulting our professional armed forces by asking them to betray their oath, for his plan to succeed.”
The Palace stressed that Duterte “should respect the Constitution, not disobey it” and that he “should desist from being as irresponsible as he has become.”
“Nakakagulat ang garapalang panawagan ni dating Pangulong Duterte sa ating sandatahang lakas na maglunsad ng kudeta laban kay Pangulong Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.,” it added.
Malacañang noted that the current administration “will not shirk from its sworn duty to govern and manage the affairs of the Filipino Nation according to the Constitution and the rule of law,” adding that they will defend their legacy before Filipinos “only by lawful means” and that they “will act resolutely to go against all unlawful attempts and challenges.”
“Hindi katanggap-tanggap ang marahas na pang-aagaw ng kapangyarihan upang madaling maluklok bilang pangulo sa pamamagitan ng pagpaslang, panggugulo, at pag-aalsa,” it noted. “Maghintay kayo sa tamang panahon, sumunod sa tamang pamamaraan."
This comes after Duterte asked the military to "protect the Constitution" due to "fractured governance" amid the word war between his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, and his successor, Marcos—even as he attacked the latter anew.
“There is a fractured governance sa Pilipinas ngayon. Nobody can correct Marcos, nobody can correct [House Speaker Martin] Romualdez. There is no urgent remedy. It is only the military who can correct it,” Duterte said in a press conference on the night of Nov. 26.
Duterte claimed anew that Marcos is a "drug addict” and made the claim against Marcos' special assistant, Antonio Lagdameo Jr, suggesting that the two of them are involved in illegal substances.
Duterte said he's challenging the military, noting it's the "protector of the Constitution."
"Kung protector sila ng Constitution, are they willing to still protect the President, who's a drug addict, for another four years?" he said.
'Active threat' vs Marcos
Duterte's statements came on the heels of Sara's expletive-laden rant against Marcos and his kin during a midnight Zoom press conference on Nov. 23 amid a House of Representatives panel's months-long probe into her offices, the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and formerly the Department of Education (DepEd), for alleged misuse of funds. She's also being questioned over the OVP and DepEd's confidential funds worth P775 million.
Sara, dropping "P.I." here and there, accused First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos of funneling cash-filled envelopes through the DepEd. She also implied that Romualdez, during a plane ride, told her that the Marcoses were pilfering campaign funds.
What takes the cake is her unequivocal account of contracting a hitman to assassinate Marcos, his wife, and Romualdez if she were killed.
"May kinausap na ako na tao. Sinabi ko sa kanya, 'Pag pinatay ako, patayin mo si BBM, si Liza Araneta, at si Martin Romualdez. No joke. No joke,'" Sara said in response to a commenter wishing for her safety. "Nagbilin na ako, Ma’am. 'Pag namatay ako, 'wag ka tumigil hanggang hindi mo mapapatay sila.' And then he said yes.”
Malacañang said they are "acting on the Vice President’s clear and unequivocal statement that she had contracted an assassin to kill the President if an alleged plot against her succeeds."
"The Executive Secretary [Cesar Chavez] has referred this active threat to the Presidential Security Command for immediate proper action," they stated.
They stressed that "any threat to the life of the President must always be taken seriously, more so that this threat has been publicly revealed in clear and certain terms."
Sara, however, said in a statement on Tuesday, Nov. 26 that the “insistence” of the current administration that Marcos' life is "under active threat" is "ominous," calling the narrative "farce" and "imagined."
“There is absolutely no flesh on the bone, and despite the absence of a reliable investigation, authorities were quick to consider this a national security concern,” she noted.
According to Sara, common sense “should be enough for us to understand and accept that a supposed conditional act of revenge does not constitute to an active threat.”
Later in the day, the National Bureau of Investigation served a subpoena to Sara, compelling her to shed light on the investigation into threats she made against the President. It was received by her office staff in Mandaluyong.
