VP Sara says dad Rodrigo likens fate to Quiboloy amid detention

Vice President Sara Duterte said her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, thinks he and his ally, Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, share the same fate as both are in detention.

The vice president is currently in The Hague, Netherlands to visit her father in detention after he was arrested for alleged crimes against humanity during his administration’s war on drugs. 

“Sabi niya na pareho daw sila ng palad ni Pastor Quiboloy, pareho daw sila ng kapalaran. Tapos sabi niya, ‘Sana pala hindi na lang kami naging magkaibigan, baka pa hindi kami napunta sa detention,’” Sara said, recalling her conversation with Rodrigo about Quiboloy. 

(He said he shares the same fate as Pastor Quiboloy. He told me he wished he hadn’t become friends with Quiboloy, so that they wouldn’t be placed in detention.) 

“Nagtawanan kami, tapos sabi ko, ‘Wala namang kinalaman ‘yung mga guhit niyo sa palad sa inyong ano…sa mga pangyayari ngayon.’ Sabi ko sa kanya, ‘Politika lahat ‘yan,’” she added. 

(We laughed about it. I told him that their palm lines/fate have nothing to do with what is happening now. I told him that it’s all because of politics.) 

Duterte was arrested in the Philippines by local authorities on March 11, 2025 based on a warrant of arrest issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). He is currently detained in the Scheveningen Prison in The Hague.

Quiboloy, meanwhile, was arrested by local authorities six months earlier or on September 8, 2024, inside the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) compound in Davao City, where the police had been searching for him for weeks. He is currently detained at Pasig City Jail.

The religious leader is facing a non-bailable qualified human trafficking charge under Section 4(a) of Republic Act No. 9208, as amended. He is also facing charges under Section 5(b) and  Section 10(a) of Republic Act 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act. 

Recently, a Pasig court has denied the petitions for bail filed by Quiboloy and his co-accused for his qualified trafficking for sexual abuse and labor exploitation case.

The Vice President said she has not yet informed her father regarding this development, as she has not read the order of the Pasig Regional Trial Court (RTC), as well as the evidence presented by the prosecution that led to the denial of the bail petition. 

Call for Abante

Sara also urged House of Representatives spokesperson Princess Abante to stop commenting on the ICC case of her father, stressing that she should only speak on behalf of the lower chamber. 

“Siguro dapat huwag magsalita si Ms. Abante patungkol sa ICC case dahil spokesperson naman siya ng House of Representatives at wala namang kinalaman ang House of Representatives sa ongoing na kaso ngayon,” the Vice President said. 

(Maybe Ms. Abante should not comment about the ICC case because she is the spokesperson of the House of Representatives and the House of Representatives has nothing to do with this case.)

She said that she went to The Hague as a Filipino and as a Vice President fighting for the rights of someone who was brought to and detained in another country.

“So ako, meron akong right. I have all the right to express my anger against what the administration of BBM did. Pero si Princess Abante, siya ay isang spokesperson ng House of Representatives so ang dapat niyang tina-topic o ibinabahagi sa taumbayan ay kung ano ‘yung nangyayari sa House of Representatives. Huwag na siyang sumawsaw. It's out of her league,” VP Sara added. 

(I have the right to express my anger against what the administration of BBM did. But as for Princess Abante, she is a spokesperson of the House of Representatives so she should be only talking about what is happening at the House of Representatives. Do not meddle in this. It's out of her league.) 

Abante said Monday that the detention of Rodrigo Duterte by the ICC over alleged drug war deaths is based on evidence. 

The House spokesperson said this in response to Sara Duterte's assertion that her father’s detention in The Hague is based on gossip and collusion between the ICC and the Marcos administration.—LDF, GMA Integrated News