Senator Imee Marcos on Tuesday, Sept. 2, accused political rivals of hatching a “Plan C” to undermine Vice President Sara Duterte and her allies by influencing the Office of the Ombudsman, following failed attempts to oust Duterte through a people’s initiative and impeachment.

In a press briefing, Marcos said the political maneuvering is part of a broader scheme to eliminate Duterte from the 2028 presidential race by putting Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin "Boying" Remulla in the Ombudsman.

"Ipipilit nila na si Boying maging Ombudsman para ipakulong si VP Inday Sara bago mag-2027 at hindi lang si Inday Sara, kundi lahat ng mga Duterte, kaalyado ng mga Duterte, baka pati ako (They will insist on making Boying the Ombudsman to jail VP Inday Sara before 2027—and not just Inday Sara, but all the Dutertes, their allies, maybe even me),” Marcos claimed.

The senator said the ongoing political bickering distracts from urgent national concerns such as flooding, corruption, and lack of government action.

Remulla applied for the post of Ombudsman, which was vacated on July 27 by Ombudsman Samuel R. Martires

“Para kayong mga kabayong naka-tapalodo sa 2028, 2026 pa lang ngayon. Napapabayaan niyo ang bayan sa kaka-isip ng ambisyon at paraan paano niyo buburahin ang mga nakaharang sa mga maiitim ninyong plano (You’re like horses with blinders focused on 2028, when it’s only 2026. You’re neglecting the country while constantly thinking about your ambitions and how to eliminate anyone standing in the way of your dark plans),” she added.

Marcos said that she had long anticipated these moves, noting that she filed a case with the Ombudsman on May 2.

The senator also criticized efforts to politicize the Ombudsman’s office, calling it a “bastion of justice” for public servants.

“Ngayon, ang OMB Bantayog ng Katuwiran para sa mga Lingkod Bayan. Pati ba naman 'yan, gusto niyong baluktutin?... Ang OMB ay opisina, hindi parlor. Tigilan niyo 'yan (Now, the Ombudsman is a monument of justice for public servants. Do you even want to twist that too? … The Ombudsman is an office, not a parlor. Stop it),” she said.

Marcos vowed to continue challenging what she described as attempts to twist democratic processes for political gain.

Meanwhile, Marcos also slammed what she claimed was “tremendous pressure” on Acting Ombudsman Dante Vargas to drop the criminal complaint she had lodged against Remulla for the purported arbitrary arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte. 

Marcos took the cudgels for the Dutertes by filing a criminal complaint against Remulla and others for usurpation of judicial functions, false testimony, perjury, arbitrary detention and grave misconduct in Duterte’s arrest on March 11, 2025. Now, she alleges that Vargas is being pressured to drop her complaint, with “enormous” sums being offered. 

The presidential sister also alleged that Vargas, who may or may not be appointed to succeed retired Ombudsman Samuel Martires, is married to a classmate of the justice secretary, intimating that it may constitute “conflict of interest,” even if such ties do not have any bearing on mandatory inhibition. 

“I urge… Vargas to resist the pressure and to honor the oath that he took. Do not let the office meant to fight corruption become corrupted itself,” Marcos said in a separate statement. 

She added: “Resolve the various pending incidents by giving the parties all the leeway necessary to ferret out the truth. Do not betray the trust of the Filipino people by giving in to fear or favor. Do not cave in to external pressure.”

Vargas is yet to reply to the allegations, who is now tasked to handle graft and plunder and other cases of high crimes against top government officials. The senator wants Vargas, the concurrent Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas, not to handle her complaint and leave its resolution to Martires’ successor.  

Vargas took over as acting Ombudsman only on August 27, 2025, a month after the retirement of Martires. The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) has interviewed applicants for Ombudsman August 28-29 and September 1-2. Aside from Remulla, the other applicants are Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Geraldine Faith Econg, former Commission on Audit (COA) chairperson Michael Aguinaldo and former Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) commissioner Kim Henares.