Vice President Sara Duterte (left), President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. (Facebook, MANILA BULLETIN)

Makabayan solon ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro says Vice President Sara Duterte's resignation from the Cabinet signals the beginning of an "open war" with President Marcos. 

"The resignation of VP Duterte from the Marcos Jr. Cabinet also marks the open war between the former allies and the upcomimg escalation of hostilities between the two camps," Castro, a House deputy minority leader, said in a statement Wednesday afternoon, June 19. 

Just minutes earlier, Vice President Duterte, daughter of administration critic and former president Rodrigo Duterte, tendered her resignation as Department of Education (DepEd) secretary. 

She did so a few days after telling reporters that the "UniTeam's" shelf life was only during the May 2022 elections. 

Former senator Marcos took the younger Duterte as his running mate in the polls two years ago. Calling themselves the UniTeam, Marcos and the Duterte handily won the presidential and vice presidential race, respectively. 

In recent months, Vice President Duterte has been viewed to be at odds with Marcos' top lieutenant in the legislature, Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) President House Speaker Martin Romualdez. 

Lakas-CMD was instrumental in the younger Duterte's election run. She was even installed party chairperson in the lead-up to the polls, but eventually resigned in May 2023.

Romualdez is Marcos' cousin.