Senator Imee Marcos announced on Wednesday, March 26, her withdrawal from the administration-backed Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas.
"I cannot stand on the same campaign platform as the rest of the Alyansa. As I have stated from the outset of the election period, I will continue to maintain my independence," she said in a statement.
In her decision to withdraw, she stated that repeatedly invoking executive privilege and the sub judice rule during the Senate's hearing into the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte last week, the government witnesses “appeared to be hiding essential facts.”
“Beyond their constant narrative that the Philippines was simply complying with its international commitments, a deliberate effort to obscure the truth only gave rise to ever greater suspicion that the Constitution may have been disregarded and our sovereignty diminished by the arrest of former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte,” she said.
“As will be soon discussed in my preliminary findings, clearly there were actions taken by the administration which run counter to my ideals and principles,” she added.
Marcos said that over and above political advantage, the sovereignty of the country and the interest of true justice for every Filipino must remain paramount.
Marcos has since skipped two previous Alyansa rallies in Tacloban and in Trece Martires, Cavite. In both instances, she cited Duterte's arrest.
The presidential sister earlier conducted a hearing as head of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations investigating the Marcos administration’s move to allow the arrest and surrender of the former leader to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to stand trial for crimes against humanity in relation to his administration’s brutal war on drugs.
Sought to respond on this development, Bagong Alyansa’s campaign manager Rep. Toby Tiangco said they welcome her decision in a very brief statement.
“We respect Senator Imee’s decision. We wish her luck in the campaign,” Tiangco said.