Quezon 2nd district Rep. David "Jay-jay" Suarez (left), Vice President Sara Duterte (MANILA BULLETIN, Facebook)

House Deputy Speaker Quezon 2nd district Rep. David “Jay-jay” Suarez has criticized Vice President Sara Duterte for her supposed "lack of maturity". 

This, after the Vice President announced that she would be skipping the State of the Nation Address (SONA) this coming July 22 at Batasan Pambansa Complex, home of the House of Representatives. 

She joked that she won't attend because she's the "designated survivor" of the SONA. This suggests that something bad could happen to the event's attendees, which include President Marcos and other high-ranking officials. 

“Ang kanyang pahayag ay nagpapakita ng kakulangan ng maturity na dapat ay taglay niya bilang isang mataas na opisyal ng gobyerno,” Suarez said in a statement Saturday, July 13.

(Her statement shows a lack of maturity, which she should possess as a high-ranking official of government.) 

“Offhand, the VP’s statements are not what we expected from someone holding the second highest office in the land,” he noted as the cited the potential implications of the joke. 

“It raises a critical question: What are the implications of such a statement for the safety and unity of our government leaders?" he asked. 

“Regardless of her intentions, her remark is a reminder of the importance of ensuring the security and safety of the President and other officials in the line of succession,” Suarez emphasized. 

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The Deputy Speaker also noted that Vice President Duterte’s comment seems to reinforce a growing belief that her past display of unity with President Marcos was merely superficial. 

“Ngayon ay mas nagiging malinaw sa atin ang tunay na intensyon at pagkatao ni Vice President Duterte,” Suarez said. 

(Now the true intentions and personality of Vice President Duterte are clearer to us.) 

Vice President Duterte was elected to her current position during May 2022 elections wherein she ran alongside her one -time "UniTeam" partner, President Marcos.