While Malacañang said securing additional funds amid the occurrence of crises is necessary, President Marcos is trying to avoid borrowing more as the Philippines' national debt reached a record high of P16.68 trillion this year.

“Sa ngayon po pinipilit ng gobyerno, ng ating pamahalaan na maiwasan po na makapag-utang at ninanais din po ng Pangulo at hinihiling na palakasin pa po natin ang ating ekonomiya at of course ang pagbabayad ng tamang buwis para po maiwasan na natin ang pag-utang nang malaki (Right now, the government is trying to avoid borrowing more, and the President also wishes to strengthen our economy and of course, to encourage the proper payment of taxes so we can avoid taking on massive debt), Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said on Monday, June 23.

“At although ang gusto ng Pangulo e, talagang paangatin po ang ekonomiya at tugunan ang lahat ng pangangailangan ng ating bayan, sa totoo lang po, may mga krisis na nangyayari, hindi po maiiwasan ang kailanganin ang pondo (Although the President aims to boost the economy and meet all the needs of our nation, the reality is that crises do occur, and funds are sometimes necessary), Castro added.

This, Castro said, is something that Vice President Sara Duterte is not seeing.

The Palace official made the statement  after Duterte questioned the country's national debt ballooning to P16 trillion, yet there seems to be no improvement.

Duterte was saying: Dapat kapag may inutang, may nakikita (If there is debt, there should be visible results).

Castro countered saying, “Let’s remember that the P16 trillion is the total debt of the government accumulated from past administrations. And we must also note that the previous administration under former president Duterte recorded the highest debt, reaching P12.79 trillion as of June 2022.”

The Palace press officer furthered that “of that, the debt incurred solely under the Duterte administration amounts to P6.84 trillion as of June 2022, marking a 115.1 percent increase in borrowing.”

Castro also criticized the vice president for saying that there is no improvement in the economy and those are only on paper.

“Sa kanyang talumpati sa Australia binanggit niya po na mayroong balita patungkol sa magandang nangyayari sa ekonomiya pero sabi niya yun ay sa papel lang. It means inamin niya na mayroong papel, may resibo, may patunay na maganda at gumaganda ang ekonomiya. Hindi ito tsismis, hindi ito paninira lamang dahil may papel siyang inamin (In her speech in Australia, she mentioned that there are reports about the improving state of the economy, but she said those are only on paper. That means she admitted that there is something written, there is a receipt, there is proof that the economy is doing well and improving. It’s not gossip, nor is it slander, because she herself acknowledged that there is written proof),”Castro pointed out.

“Nakakalungkot po. Mahirap turuan ang walang alam at walang balak umalam. Mahirap ding buksan ang mata ng bulag at nagbubulagbulagan (It’s really sad. It’s hard to teach someone who does not know and does not want to learn. It’s also hard to open the eyes of someone who is blind or chooses to remain blind), Castro added.

The Palace official also debunked Duterte's statement that the 2.16-kilometer bridge that links Samar and Leyte in Visayas was not considered as a tourist spot

“Sabi nga natin nakakaalarma ang kakulangan sa kaalaman. Nagiging sanhi ito ng kasinungalingan. Tandaan po natin ang San Juanico Bridge, ito po ay simbolo ng kagandahan at engineering capabilities noong panahon, noong 1973 (As we said, the lack of knowledge is alarming. It becomes the root of misinformation. Let us remember that the San Juanico Bridge is a symbol of beauty and engineering capability during its time, back in 1973), Castro said.

In her speech at a pro-Duterte rally in Australia, Duterte shared that she was irritated with one portion of an advertisement saying that the bridge was a tourist spot.

“Ang masakit lang, kapwa natin Pinoy, ibinabagsak ang turismo ng bayan, inaangat ang turismo ng ibang bansa. Samantalang ang Pangulo kagagaling lamang sa Japan para palakasin ang turismo ng ating bansa (What’s painful is that it is our fellow Filipinos who bring down our own tourism while promoting the tourism of other countries. Meanwhile, the President has just come back from Japan to strengthen our country’s tourism),” Castro said.