VP Sara Duterte seeks dismissal of complaint over 'kill remark'

Vice President Sara Duterte has asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to dismiss the complaint filed over her remark that she ordered someone to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and others if she dies.

On Friday, Duterte personally attended the preliminary investigation into the complaint of inciting to sedition and grave threats filed against her by the National Bureau of Investigation.

“Ang kauna-unahang araw ng preliminary investigation, siya ay nagpakita at nagbigay ng kanyang counter-affidavit na naglalahad na nga nung kanyang mga dahilan kung bakit hindi dapat ipagpatuloy at ibasura na lamang ang mga paratang, mga reklamo laban sa kanya,” Atty. Paul Lim, one of her lawyers, said in an ambush interview.

(On the very first day of the preliminary investigation, she appeared and submitted her counter-affidavit, which laid out her reasons why the complaints against her should not proceed.)

In the first page of her counter-affidavit, Duterte said that she “categorically denies the charges against [her].”

“I welcome this opportunity to set the facts straight and to correct complainant’s false allegations, clear my name of their baseless charges, and spare our government and our people the corresponding waste of limited time, effort, and resources being caused thereby,” it stated.

Atty. Michael Poa, Duterte’s former spokesperson and one of her lawyers, meanwhile, declined to give further details.

“We will not discuss muna no ‘yung aming defenses. We don’t want to preempt and out of respect na rin. Para po ma appreciate ng walang outside influences ng mga prosecutors natin,” Poa said.

(We will not discuss our defenses for now. We don’t want to preempt anything and it’s also out of respect. So that our prosecutors can appreciate the case without outside influences.)

In an online press briefing in 2024, Duterte said that she ordered someone to kill Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta, and Speaker Martin Romualdez if an alleged plot against her succeeds.

For her part, the vice president declined to give her comment on the proceedings due to the advice of her lawyers.

When asked, Poa said they do not want to "politicize the matter further."

“Sa atin naman kasi ngayon, it’s very straightforward. We don’t want to really politicize this matter further. It’s a legal process. We came here to attend a legal process,” Poa said.

(For us, this is very straightforward. We really don’t want to politicize this matter further. It’s a legal process. We came here to attend a legal process.)

Earlier, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said that Duterte will be accorded due process.

“Due process,” Remulla said when asked what the vice president can expect from the Justice Department. “No problem with due process… we respect the office. Alam mo naman, (you know) that’s the most important.”

In a separate statement, the DOJ said it will ensure that the rule of law will prevail, regardless of the respondent.

“The DOJ will ensure that the process will follow the normal course of law, and that accountability and the rule of law will prevail regardless of who the respondent may be,” it said.

When asked, Poa said this is something they expect, adding that this is the bare minimum.

The next preliminary probe will take place on May 16.

Duterte previously said that her “assassination” statement was not a threat, saying she only highlighted the alleged threat to her security.

She also said her remarks were “maliciously taken out of logical context.” — RSJ, GMA Integrated News