President Marcos did not mention his sister, Senator Imee Marcos, when he endorsed the senatorial candidates of the Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas slate in Trece Martires, Cavite, on Friday night, March 21.

The President's speech followed the usual pattern, mentioning that none of his bets were involved in the drug war or Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs)—issues that hounded the previous administration.

He likewise introduced and praised the background and track record of his candidates, all except one: his sister, who did not attend the campaign rally.

Senator Marcos is one of the three senatorial hopefuls of the Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas who were reportedly dismayed by Duterte's arrest. The other two candidates, Senator Pia Cayetano and Congresswoman Camille Villar, were mentioned by President Marcos in his speech in Cavite even though Villar was not present at the event.

The Palace has yet to clarify if skipping Senator Marcos was deliberate or if the President overlooked her.

The speech came as Senator Marcos launched a hearing on the arrest and surrender of former president Rodrigo Duterte to the International Criminal Court (ICC) on March 11.

Communications Secretary Claire Castro said this week that Malacañang will not block the Senator's investigation into Duterte's arrest and even welcomed it as an opportunity for the government to show that it had simply followed the law.

"Kung anuman daw po ang gagawing paghi-hearing sa Senado hindi naman po natin ito tututulan dahil para ipakita sa taumbayan na tayo po ay sumusunod lamang sa batas (Whatever hearings the Senate will conduct, we will not oppose them to show the public that we are merely following the law)," she said.

On Friday, March 21, Castro thanked the Senate for conducting the hearing, saying it had shed light on the issue and clarified some misconceptions the public might have had.

"Mas naliwanagan ang tao, ang taumbayan kung ano ba ang nangyari (The public was clarified with what happened)," she said.

"Napaliwanag po kung ano iyong batas at kung ano lang iyong ginawang batas kaya maraming salamat sa pagkakaroon po ng Senate hearing na ito (The law was explained so we thank the Senate for this inquiry)," she added.

"Kung nalungkot po sila, hindi po natin saklaw ang kanilang damdamin (If they were saddened by what happened, we have no control over the feelings)," Castro said.