President Duterte remains supportive of Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and does not treat him as a “whipping boy” over alleged poor official response to the coronavirus pandemic, Malacañang said Wednesday.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque maintained that the President has not lost confidence in Duque despite criticisms hurled by some groups against the county’s health chief.

Roque came to the defense of Duque after Senator Leila de Lima claimed the President needed Duque to be his fall guy over alleged mishandling of the efforts to contain the disease outbreak.

"I can tell you, the President has not been treating Secretary Duque as a whipping boy. The question I’m asked more often is why not. But it has never been the case that I think the President has ever used him as a whipping boy, he’s always been supportive of Secretary Duque,” Roque said over CNN Philippines.

"He (President Duterte) says mistakes have been made, for as long as these mistakes were done in good faith, then it’s no reason for him to lose confidence so let’s leave it at that," he said.

De Lima earlier questioned the President's trust in Duque despite his alleged "countless and consequential blunders," including his erroneous claim the country has flattened the coronavirus curve.

The senator said Duque's mistakes have resulted to surge in cases, overwhelmed hospitals, over-fatigued medical healthcare workers, and the distrust of people. In asking why Duque has been retained in his post, she said Duterte “just needs a whipping boy for the tragedy that they themselves have brought to our nation.”