Malacañang has rejected accusations that President Marcos is responsible for the conflicts in the Senate, stressing that the disarray in the upper chamber is due to the efforts of Vice President Sara Duterte’s allies to shield her from impeachment.

Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro called the accusations made by Duterte "repeated lies."

On June 10, the Vice President said the ongoing Senate leadership dispute reflects a broader lack of direction in government, criticizing what she described as “weak” leadership from Malacañang.

Duterte said, "the turmoil in the Senate reflects the leadership of the administration."

"Ang paulit-ulit na kasinungalingan ay naglalagay sa atin sa isang kumunoy (Repeated lies are putting us in quicksand)," Castro said in a Palace briefing on Thursday, June 11.

Castro hit back at the Vice President, saying "while the President keeps working, the Vice President continues to attack and distort the narrative."

The Palace mouthpiece pointed out that the incidents in the Senate—the change in leadership from Senator Vicente Sotto III to Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, the shooting incident, and the escape of Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa" —were not ordered by the President.

She argued that these actions were motivated by attempts to obstruct Duterte’s impeachment.

"Ang dapat nating tandaan, ito naman ay nasa records, ang putukan na nangyari sa Senado, hindi po ito pinag-utos ng Pangulo. Ito ay may pagsang-ayon si Senator Alan Cayetano (What we should remember is that this is all on record: the confrontation that happened in the Senate was not ordered by the President. Senator Alan Cayetano agreed to it)," Castro said.

"Inamin din naman ni Senator Bato dela Rosa kung bakit pinilit na siya ay pumunta at bumoto – una, to change the leadership; pangalawa, for the impeachment. So, ang mga tao sa likod nito, ang lahat ng ito, lahat sila, sila iyong nagsasabing dapat na ibasura ang impeachment, ito ay lahat para sa proteksiyon ng Bise Presidente (Senator Bato dela Rosa himself also admitted why he was compelled to go and vote—first, to change the leadership; second, for the impeachment. So the people behind all of this, all of them, are the same people saying that the impeachment should be dismissed. All of this is for the protection of the Vice President)," Castro added.

The Palace spokesperson also said that assisting Dela Rosa to evade the situation did not come from the President.

"Ang pagpapalabas, pagpapatakas kay Senator Bato dela Rosa sa tulong ni Senator Robin Padilla, hindi ito nanggagaling sa Pangulo; ang dalawang sinabi nating senador ay kaalyado ng Bise Presidente (The release or assistance given to Senator Bato dela Rosa to evade the situation, with the help of Senator Robin Padilla, did not come from the President. The two senators we mentioned are allies of the Vice President)," Castro said.

"So, hindi totoo na patungkol daw sa kahinaan ng liderato sa administrasyon kung hindi ito ay sa patuloy na pang-aabuso sa kapangyarihan para lamang sa kanilang mga kaalyado. So, huwag sanang mamihasa sa pagdudungis ng iba para magmukhang biktima sa ating mga mata (So, it is not true that this supposedly reflects weakness in the administration’s leadership. Rather, it is about the continued abuse of power for the sake of their allies. Therefore, people should not get accustomed to smearing others just to make themselves appear as victims in our eyes)," Castro stressed.

Castro further stressed that Malacañang is not the only one concerned about the potential impacts of the Senate leadership dispute on the impeachment proceedings; it is also the concern of the people.

"Hindi lamang siguro ang Palasyo ang nakakakita niyan kung hindi buong sambayanang Pilipino. Ang nais lamang po ng Pangulo ay masunod ang due process, masunod ang proseso, masunod ang rule of law para kung may kailangang managot, dapat na managot; kung kailangan na malinis ang pangalan, dapat linisin ang pangalan (Perhaps it is not only the Palace that sees this, but the entire Filipino people. What the President wants is simply for due process to be followed, for proper procedures to be observed, and for the rule of law to prevail so that if someone must be held accountable, they are held accountable; and if someone’s name needs to be cleared, then it should be cleared)," Castro said.

"So, iyon lamang po ang concern ng bawat Pilipino. Dapat makita natin ang katotohanan, hindi sa pagtatago gamit ang kasinungalingan (So that is the concern of every Filipino. We must see the truth, not hidden due to lies)," Castro added.

The Palace official also agreed to a statement made by House Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega, saying it seems difficult to blame Malacañang for the disorder in the Senate when most of the key players in the "drama" are close friends and political allies of Duterte.

"Sa ating paningin, hindi lamang po ang Palasyo ang maaaring mag-agree dito, karamihan po sa atin nakikita po naman ang katotohanan (From our perspective, it is not only the Palace that may agree with this. Most of us can clearly see the truth)," Castro said.

"Ang tanging naniniwala na lamang po siguro na may kasalanan ang Malacañang dito or kahinaan ng Malacañang or Palasyo o Ehekutibo patungkol dito sa nangyayaring gulo ay silang dalawa na lamang ni Senator Alan Cayetano (Perhaps the only ones who still believe that Malacañang is at fault here or that this situation reflects weakness on the part of Malacañang, the Palace, or the Executive branch regarding the ongoing turmoil, are just the two of them: Duterte and Alan Peter Cayetano), Castro added.