MANILA, Philippines — A ten-second conversation can explain the "mischievous" context behind why First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos was seen swiping a wine glass out of Senate President Chiz Escudero's hands and drinking from it at a recent event in Malacañang, or so she claims.
Araneta-Marcos described the viral incident that took place on Independence Day as a playful exchange between herself and Escudero, who she said noticed that she "could use a drink" after greeting dozens of ambassadors in the annual reception for diplomats.
The brief clip that went viral on social media, which was spliced from a Radio Television Malacañang video, shows Araneta-Marcos immediately turning away from Escudero after drinking from his glass to greet those behind her. The Senate president was seen smiling while holding his glass as the First Lady received another glass from a waiter.
But in a radio interview on Friday, the president's wife recounted word-per-word the conversation between her and the Senate president before and after she drank from his glass and handed it back to him.
Prior to the First Lady's interview, Escudero had explained the situation to reporters as him being a "gentleman" by "waiting on a lady (first or otherwise)."
For the First Lady, this was how the moment went down:
"When Chiz saw me, he said, 'Wow — bilib din ako sa iyo (I'm impressed with you). May energy ka pa after standing and smiling for over an hour. (You still have energy after standing and smiling for over an hour). I'm sure you could use a drink,'" Araneta-Marcos said.
"I laughed and said, 'You bet.' And so I mischievously got his glass of champagne, took a sip and told him, 'Eww hindi naman malamig ang champagne (Your champagne is not cold).' After that, I gave his champagne glass back to him and we both had a good laugh over that," she added.
The First Lady said: "I think the entire exchange took all of 10 seconds."
She added that whether the Senate president was made to act like a waiter or he responded like a gentleman "is between us."
The brief moment between Araneta-Marcos and Escudero has since made the rounds on social media, and some users have pointed out that the First Lady's behavior was unbecoming, while others have poked fun at Escudero for seemingly acting like a waiter.
The vin d’honneur or reception for the diplomatic corps was one of several Independence Day events held by the government on June 12.