National heroes concealed their identities through the use of aliases for the sake of the nation, and not for money, Malacañang said.

This was what Malacañang stated when asked to comment on Senator-judge Robin Padilla's attempt to justify the use of fictitious names in documents tied to the alleged disbursement of confidential funds of Vice President Sara Duterte by citing national heroes' use of revolutionary aliases.

For the awareness of young Filipinos, Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said there is a huge difference in the intention of using aliases by national heroes and the use of aliases in dealing with the confidential funds of the Vice President.

"So, para sa kaalaman ng mga kabataan, kung ito ang pagkukumparahin natin, ang mga bayani noon ay lumalaban para sa bayan, itinatago ang pagkakakilanlan para sa bayan pero iyong iba ngayon, itinatago ang pagkakakilanlan para sa bayad (So, for the benefit of the younger generation, if we compare the two: the heroes of the past fought for the country and hid their identities for the sake of the nation. But some people today hide their identities for the sake of getting paid)," Castro said in a Palace briefing on Thursday, Aug. 27.

The Palace spokesperson also argued that even if heroes in the past used pseudonyms, they were known to be real people, stressing that the same cannot be confirmed in relation to the disbursement of confidential funds.

"[A]ng mga bayani noon, kahit gumamit ng pseudonym ay alam nating totoong tao. Sa ngayon, ang mga resibong naipakita, hindi natin alam kung totoong tao o sila ay multo or mga ghost beneficiaries (And the heroes of the past, even when they used pseudonyms, were known to be real people. Today, however, we do not know whether the people named in the receipts presented are real individuals or whether they are merely ghosts or so-called ghost beneficiaries)," Castro said.

Castro, however, said the Malacañang respects the right of Padilla to express his mind, noting that the Marcos administration will not interfere with his opinion.

The Palace spokesperson also stressed that the public should not be misled about the actual role national heroes played in the past.

"Karapatan po niya, kung ano po ang nasaloobin ni Senator Robin Padilla, hindi po ito panghihimasukan ng administrasyon, hindi po ito panghihimasukan ng Palasyo (It is his right to express whatever Senator Robin Padilla feels or has in mind. The administration will not interfere with it, nor will Malacañang)," Castro said.

"Karapatan po niya kung ano ang nais niyang ipahiwatig pero kinakailangan din po nating maipakita kung ano ba ang katotohanan para hindi rin po maligaw ang ating mga kabataan kung ano ba ang talagang naging papel ng ating mga bayani noon – gumagamit ng pseudonym pero hindi para itago ang bayad (It is his right to express whatever he wishes to convey. However, we also need to present the facts so that our young people will not be misled about the actual role our heroes played in the past—heroes who used pseudonyms, but not to conceal the fact that they were being paid)," Castro added.

The Palace official further said that the situation in the past is "somewhat different" from the case of Duterte's confidential fund disbursement.

"[A]yaw po nating manghusga, ayaw nating maging judgmental sa ginawa ni Senator Robin Padilla pero iba po kasi ang nakikita ng PCO (Presidential Communications Office), ng Palasyo para ihambing iyong mga informant ngayon na nagtatrabaho para sa bayad kung ikukumpara mo sa mga bayani na nagbubuwis ng buhay at pawis, talino para lang ipaglaban ang ating mga kababayan lalung-lalo iyong mga nasa laylayan ng lipunan noong panahon na ang Pilipinas ay nasasakop ng dayuhan (We do not want to judge or be judgmental about what Senator Robin Padilla did. However, the PCO and Malacañang see a distinction when comparing today’s informants, who work for payment, with the heroes who sacrificed their lives, sweat, and intellect simply to fight for their fellow Filipinos, especially those on the margins of society, during the period when the Philippines was under foreign occupation)," Castro said.

"So, medyo magkaiba po ang sitwasyon noon kaysa itong mga sinasabi natin diumanong tumanggap ng milyung-milyong pondo para sa information at para sa mga rewards (So, the situation back then was somewhat different from what we are talking about now, those who allegedly received millions of pesos in funding for providing information and for rewards)," Castro added.