Vice President Sara Duterte on Wednesday night, Aug. 21, denied allegations that her children's book, “Isang Kaibigan,” was plagiarized.

Vice President Sara Duterte and her children's book (Inday Sara Duterte/Facebook)

In a statement, the official stressed there was no need for her to copy from another as her book was a way to encourage Filipino kids to read again.

“Napakadaling sumulat ng maikling kwento batay sa sariling karanasan, hindi na kailangang mangopya pa (It’s easy to write a short story based on one’s experience, there’s no need to copy),” she said.

“Ang proyekto ay para mahikayat ang mga bata na mahalin ang pagbabasa at sumulat ng sarili nilang kwento (The project is to encourage kids to love reading and to write their own stories),” she added.

Her statement came amid allegations on social media that her book, which was the subject of inquiry during the Senate budget deliberations earlier this week, bears similarities with “Owly: The Way Home” by Andy Runton.

She emphasized that there are bigger issues that need to be addressed, and that her book wasn’t the problem.

“Hindi ang libro ang problema ng bayan kundi ang kahinaan sa pagbabasa ng ating kabataan (The book is not the country’s problem but the low readership among our youth),” Duterte said.

Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros, during the Senate budget deliberations, questioned the allocation of P10 million in the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) 2025 budget for the publication and distribution of “Isang Kaibigan.”

The Vice President took offense to the nitpicking of her office’s budget, and said the issue was being politicized because parents of the kids who will read her book might vote for her.