Despite absence, Sara Duterte to monitor Marcos' SONA in Manila
While she won’t be attending President Marcos’ State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 22, Vice President Sara Duterte said that she will be monitoring from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) headquarters in Mandaluyong City.
President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte (Inday Sara Duterte/Facebook)
During a media interview after the turnover ceremony at the Department of Education (DepEd) headquarters on Thursday, July 18, the official shared that she will most definitely be in Manila during the SONA.
“Dito ako sa Manila manonood ng SONA. Wala pa, hindi pa nagawa ang aking schedule for Monday. Pero ang sigurado ako nandito ako sa Maynila (I will watch the SONA here in Manila. My schedule for Monday has not been set yet. But I am sure that I will be in Manila),” she said.
This is the first time the Vice President, who was Marcos’ running mate during the 2022 national elections, will skip the Chief Executive’s SONA.
But while she will not be at the Batasang Pambansa personally next week, and she admitted having “personal” and “work” issues with the Marcos administration, Duterte stressed that she and Marcos are still “okay.”
“Okay naman iyong relationship namin ni President Marcos (My relationship with President Marcos is okay),” she said.
The Vice President recently drew the ire of some lawmakers and known allies of Marcos when she remarked that she’s appointing herself as a “designated survivor.”
The Philippines, unlike the United States, has no law on designated survivor.