Sara Duterte decries 'organized demolition job' against her

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte believes she has been targeted by an “organized demolition job” based on the escalation of personal attacks against her online as well as the public’s reaction to her push for confidential funds last year.

In a statement released Thursday night, Duterte said that recent “attacks” meant to ruin her reputation have become more “intense, severe and desperate,” and these aim to frame her as a “killer” or “someone corrupt, abusive, traitorous and a war lord.”

“We can see it in the attack on confidential funds, the spread of the video of Commonwealth traffic, making an issue out of the security personnel of the Office of the Vice President (OVP), the witness who came out to accuse me of being part of the Davao Death Squad, in the malicious report about my guns, and the disrespectful remarks about my relationship with my husband,” Duterte said in Filipino.

In 2023, the vice president had sought to include P650 million worth of confidential funds in the proposed budget of the OVP and the Department of Education (DepEd) combined, arguing that the secret lump sum would be used to “mold children who are patriotic” and those opposing the fund were “enemies of the nation" for obstructing peace.

Despite repeated requests for transparency by lawmakers, and public outrage over the secret funds she obtained in the previous budget cycle, Duterte refused to disclose precisely how the confidential funds of the OVP and DepEd would be spent.

After widespread criticisms, both the House of Representatives and the Senate realigned the OVP and the DepEd’s confidential and intelligence budget to national agencies focused on defending the West Philippine Sea.

During roughly the same period, Duterte was also falsely accused of ordering a portion of the Commonwealth to be blocked off to allow her convoy to pass through, which a Quezon City police officer was heard saying in a viral video. The police officer involved said that the instructions to make way for a “VIP” confused him and has since apologized for the incident.

Last January, retired police officer and self-confessed hitman Arturo Lascañas said during a press conference Duterte came up with the “trademark” of Oplan Tokhang in Davao City when she was mayor there and ordered then-police chief Ronald Bato Dela Rosa to carry out the violent campaign against drug users. 

In response to Lascañas, who is currently in hiding abroad, the vice president challenged him to file a murder case against her in the Philippines.

Duterte earlier said that she is being targeted by multiple attacks after a member of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ — the church Apollo Quiboloy founded — told senators during a hearing that Duterte received guns from Quiboloy when she was still mayor of Davao City.

RELATED: Sara Duterte says accusations of ties to Quiboloy part of series 'attacks'  

In her statement, Duterte described the position of the vice president as an easy target because it stands as “the main obstacle to those who dream of becoming president.”

Duterte’s predecessor, former Vice President Leni Robredo, was the biggest victim of election-related disinformation carrying negative messages in the lead-up to the 2022 elections. Meanwhile, then-presidential candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Duterte’s runningmate, was the biggest benefactor of disinformation carrying positive messages.

Duterte’s father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, had once falsely accused Robredo of orchestrating an online social media campaign to criticize him during the onslaught of Typhoon Ulysses in 2020. In addition, Duterte also called Robredo a “liar” and made sexual innuendos about her during his televised address.