President Marcos greets Vice President Sara on her birthday

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos yesterday greeted Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte on her birthday as rumors of their political coalition breaking up persist.

In a Facebook post, Marcos praised Sara for her service to students and teachers and urged her to continue working with him to strengthen the education sector.

“Happy Birthday, Inday Sara! Pinalalakas ng ‘yong sipag at pagmamahal sa bayan ang ating mga kabataan at kaguruan (Your diligence and love for country strengthen our youth and teachers),” the President said.

“Ipagpatuloy lang natin ito para sa isang matatag na edukasyon sa ilalim ng Bagong Pilipinas! (Let us continue this so we can achieve a strong education sector under a new Philippines),” he added.

Marcos was making a reference to the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Matatag curriculum, and which stands for Make the curriculum relevant to produce job-ready, Active and responsible citizens; Take steps to accelerate the delivery of basic education services and provision facilities; Take good care of learners by promoting learner well-being, inclusiveness learning and positive learning environment and Give support for teachers to teach better.

The Presidential Communications Office, the government’s lead communication arm, also recognized Sara’s efforts in the DepEd.

“We pray for your good health and success in the coming years. We sincerely thank you for your service to the nation, especially to the Filipino students and teachers,” the PCO said in a separate Facebook post.

Marcos and Sara won by landslide during the 2022 elections under the UniTeam alliance but recent events have triggered speculations that the coalition already has cracks.

Late last year, the House of Representatives, which is dominated by Marcos’ allies, stripped the agencies led by Duterte of confidential funds, prompting her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte to accuse the chamber of being the “most rotten” institution.

Lawmakers denied the allegation and adopted a resolution upholding the legislative chamber’s honor and integrity.

The elder Duterte has also claimed that Marcos is a drug addict, an allegation the President just laughed off.

In April, First Lady Liza Marcos caused political shockwaves when she revealed her disdain for Duterte. In a television interview, Liza said she was hurt when she saw the Vice President on TV laughing while her father was making fun of Marcos and even calling him bangag or stoned during a rally in Davao City.

Reacting to Liza’s remark, Duterte said the First Lady’s personal feelings had nothing to do with her mandate as a government official.

In a recent interview, Marcos said Liza cannot be blamed for reacting that way but maintained that the issue would not affect his working relationship with Sara.

“I think that, she (Sara), also, as a wife, understands how the First Lady feels when you have to sit there and listen to these attacks that are being made against your husband,” the President told reporters last April. 

The Office of the Vice President (OVP) also greeted its boss yesterday. “Happy birthday, VP Sara! On this special day, we honor your unmatched dedication and service to our country,” the OVP said in statement written in Filipino.

“Together with millions of Filipinos, we wish you greater strength, wisdom and inspiration to continue your advocacies for God, our country and the Filipino families,” the OVP added.

The OVP also thanked the Vice President for her “unwavering dedication and service” to the agency.

“Thank you very much for your unwavering dedication and service. May you live long (Mabuhay po kayo)!” 

No official schedule of Duterte’s engagement for the day was released by the OVP to the media.

Nonetheless, the OVP through its Disaster Operations Center distributed yesterday relief bags of non-food items to 2,000 families affected by floods in the six barangays in Lucena City, Quezon hardest hit by Typhoon Aghon.