MANILA, Philippines — Despite the threatening remarks of Vice President Sara Duterte, President Marcos proceeded with his schedule yesterday as he and First Lady Liza Marcos led the recognition ceremony at Malacañang for award-winning Filipino chorale groups.
Marcos and the First Lady were all smiles while awarding each winning chorale group with a certificate and P200,000 check.
The seven awarding-winning chorale groups during the Gintong Parangal: Honoring the Champion Choirs of 2024 are the University of the Philippines Manila Chorale, Quezon City Performing Arts Development Foundation Concert Chorus, Sola Gratia Chorale, University of Mindanao Chorale, Los Cantantes de Manila, Imusicapella and University of Santo Tomas Singers.
After the awarding ceremony, members of the chorale groups even serenaded Marcos and the First Lady.
During his speech, Marcos acknowledged the efforts of his sister, Irene Marcos-Araneta in organizing the recognition ceremony.
“As you may know, Irene and I, my sister Imee and my whole family grew up in houses always full of music. Thanks to my mother, Imelda. And there was always music in our home and we now make this conversation between ourselves… I don’t know how we could go through life without music. Now there would be little less meaning to everything that we do,” Marcos said.
“Not only because you have achieved such greatness in the international arena but because you have – in doing so, you have shown once again that very important part of the Filipino culture, which is music. And it is not any music that we are now promoting. It’s Filipino music,” Marcos added.
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin joined in welcoming the chorale groups.
During an expletive-laced press conference of Duterte, she alleged that she was the subject of an assassination plot and that she ordered a member of her security team to kill the President should it succeed.
The Duterte and Marcos families have seen their alliance unravel in recent months, trading accusations of drug addiction and extreme rhetoric ahead of future elections.