Palace to VP Sara: You’re the source of fake news vs. FL Liza

Malacañang's Press Office on Monday accused Vice President Sara Duterte of spreading fake news about First Lady Louise ''Liza'' Araneta-Marcos.

At a press briefing, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro brought up rumors that circulated about the First Lady's whereabouts in March.

''Sa kaniya pala nanggaling ang fake news. Siya pala ang source ng fake news na ito na pinapakalat laban sa Unang Ginang, kay First Lady. Unang-una po, kailangan pa ba nating paniwalaan ang mga ganitong klaseng istorya na nanggagaling sa Bise Presidente?'' Castro said.

(So the fake news came from her [Duterte]. She's the source of fake news against the First Lady. First, should we believe this kind of story from the Vice President?)

''Tandaan po natin, dumating si First Lady sa Pilipinas, March 10, 2025.  Kung gusto niyang alamin iyan bilang Bise Presidente ay may record po iyan. March 11, nagkaroon po ng event si First Lady with the representatives of Girl Scouts of the Philippines, that’s [March] 11, 2025,'' she added.

(Let's recall, the First Lady arrived here on March 10, 2025. If she wants to verify that, this information was recorded. On March 11, the First Lady had an event with the Girl Scouts of the Philippines.)

Castro had denied that the First Lady was held by law enforcers in the United States, where she was on a working visit to participate in the Meeting of the Minds and the Manila International Film Festival. She was in Miami, Florida and Los Angeles, California from March 5 to 8.

‘Don’t listen to Castro’

The Vice President later on Monday reacted to Castro’s “fake news” allegation, stressing that people should no longer listen to the Palace official because what she’s saying is “garbage.”

“Lagi ko naman na sinasabi ‘no, ‘wag na tayong makinig kay Claire Castro at sa pinsan niya na si France Castro dahil nga ang kanilang pamilya ay pamilya ng garbage in, garbage out. So, basura ang lumalabas lagi sa bibig nila,” Sara Duterte said in an ambush interview in Zamboanga Sibugay.

(I’m always saying that we should not listen to Claire Castro and her cousin France Castro because their family is garbage in, garbage out. What comes out of their mouths is always garbage.)

France Castro, the Act Teachers partylist congresswoman who is running for Senate in next week's elections and who has been a staunch critic of the Vice President, had earlier clarified that she is not related to the Palace official.

“Ayaw ko nang mag-explain kay Castro kung ano ang ibig kong sabihin. Kapag hindi niya naintindihan ay kasalanan niya ‘yun, at wala akong obligasyon na mag-explain sa kanya,” Duterte added.

(I don't want to explain to Castro what I mean. If she doesn't understand, it's her fault, and I have no obligation to explain to her.) — BM, GMA Integrated News