Malacañang said President Marcos remains focused on governance and delivering results, dismissing claims that he is preoccupied with his legacy.

Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said this after Davao City Representative Paolo Duterte said in a social media post that he finds it “ironic” that Marcos is worried about anyone undoing his legacy.

In an interview with DZMM, Castro said the President’s priorities center on reforms—particularly in anti-corruption, agriculture, healthcare, and education—to be sustained beyond his term.

“Hindi focus lang ang Pangulo sa legasiya. Gumagawa at nagtatrabaho ang Pangulo (The President is not focused on legacy. He is working and delivering),” she said.

“Ang gusto ng Pangulo… yung ginagawa pong pagpapanagot sa mga dapat managot patungkol sa korapsyon… sana magtuloy-tuloy ito kahit tapos na ang kanyang termino (The President wants accountability for corruption to continue even after his term),” she added.

She added that the administration is also pushing long-term improvements in agriculture and health services.

Castro said education is among the President’s top priorities, warning of long-term consequences if reforms are not sustained.

“Yung edukasyon na hindi po talaga nabigyan ng pansin noong hindi pa panahon ni [Department of Education] Secretary Sonny Angara. Itong ginagawa po ngayon sana magtuloy-tuloy po (Education took the back seat before the time of Secretary Angara. We hope that the current efforts would be continued),” she said.

“Kapag napabayaan po yung edukasyon, talagang magtutuloy-tuloy po yung pagbaba ng edukasyon ng ating mga kababayan (If education is neglected, the decline in learning will continue),” she added.

The Palace Press Officer said the President has been actively responding to the impact of rising oil prices amid tensions in the Middle East.

“Umaamin tayong mataas pero kumikilos ang Pangulo… naghahanap ng supply, inuutusan ang mga ahensya… para maibsan ang impact (We acknowledge prices are high, but the President is acting… seeking supply and directing agencies to lessen the impact),” Castro said.

“Hindi po siguro ’yan nagawa ng nakaraang administrasyon, kaya gustong ipahid ni Mayor Pulong ang mga kahinaan at yung mga hindi nagawa ng kanyang ama (Perhaps the last administration failed to do that; that’s why Mayor Pulong wanted to smear his father’s weaknesses and failures on President Marcos),” she added. 

Casro contrasted this with what she described as the previous administration’s response.

“Nakita natin kung paano kumilos ang Pangulo. Hindi po siya katulad ni dating pangulong Duterte na naggi-give up (We see that the President is working, unlike former president Duterte who gave up),” Castro said.

“Sabi niya (Duterte) na kahit sunugin siya pati ang kongreso, wala siyang magagawa sa pagtaas ng presyo ng krudo o ng produktong petrolyo (The former president Duterte said that even if people set him and Congress on fire, he couldn’t do anything about the price of oil and petroleum products),” she added.

Castro also said President Marcos wants to be remembered for upholding human rights, a reference to allegations of human rights violations hurled against Duterte, who is now under the custody of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, the Netherlands, for crimes against humanity.

“Gusto rin maalala ng Pangulo… na walang patayan sa kanyang panahon. Walang EJK (The President wants to be remembered that there were no killings under his term. No extrajudicial killings),” she said.

“Walang intensyong pagpatay para lang sa sinasabing war on drugs (No intentional killings just for a so-called war on drugs),” she added.