Vice President Sara Duterte’s cryptic post on Instagram referring to someone as “tambaloslos” (a Visayan pejorative term) is making the rounds on social media as netizens debate on who was the subject of her remark.
(Photo from Inday Sara Duterte/Instagram)
On Sunday, May 21, the official posted a selfie taken in what looks like inside an airplane.
The Vice President captioned it with, “Sa imong ambisyon, do not be tambaloslos.” This had 43,571 like reactions as of posting time.
Netizens were quick to dissect who Duterte could be referring to after translating her caption, “In your ambition, do not be thick-faced.”
Sources said tambaloslos, a Visayan term used to attack the character of a person, has no direct Tagalog or English translation, though the nearest would be “thick-faced” or “shameless.”
On Google, tambaloslos refers to a “mythical creature” with a large mouth and penis found in Visayan, Bicolano, and Mindanao folklore.
The creature is believed to have the power to confuse people and make them lose their way or go around in circles.
Duterte’s post came after major shake-ups in the House of Representatives and her resignation as chairperson from Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD).
Her resignation, which she did not give a reason to, happened on the heels of former president and Pampanga 2nd District Rep. Gloria Arroyo being stripped off her senior house deputy speaker position in the lower chamber.
Arroyo, who was quick to squash rumors that she tried to stage a coup against House Speaker Martin Romualdez, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s cousin, is Duterte’s mentor.