Palace to VP Sara: Your trips won't solve PH problems

Malacañang on Tuesday hit back at Vice President Sara Duterte for defending her foreign travels and saying that Filipino communities abroad were supposedly frustrated with the country's state. 

''Well, una siguro nga po mapu-frustrate iyong mga kababayan natin abroad dahil ang Pangulo po ay nasa Pilipinas, nagtatrabaho, inaayos iyong mga problema at lumalaban sa mga anomaly at korapsiyon. Samantalang ang Bise Presidente ay madalas na nasa personal trip,'' Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said in a briefing.

(First of all, our kababayans will be frustrated since our President is in the Philippines working while the Vice President is mostly on personal trips.) 

''At hindi po sagot ang pagbibiyahe para masolusyunan kung may problema man ang bansa. Hindi po trabaho ng Bise Presidente at wala po sa Konstitusyon na kailangan siyang magbiyahe para siraan ang Pangulo at para hilingin sa taumbayan ang pagbagsak at pagtanggal sa puwesto ng Pangulo,'' she added. 

(Traveling will not solve the country's problems. It's not the duty of the Vice President to travel just to criticize the President and discredit him.) 

GMA News Online has reached the Vice President's camp for a reaction on Castro's latest statement, but she has yet to reply as of posting time.

In a recent interview, the Vice President explained why she had to go abroad in the previous months. 

“Lumalabas ako ng bansa dahil frustrated na ang Filipino communities abroad sa nangyayari dito sa ating bayan. At pangalawa, bumibisita ako sa tatay ko na nakakulong,” she added.

(I go outside the country because Filipino communities abroad are frustrated with what’s happening in our country. Second, I’m visiting my detained father.)

Edited?

Meanwhile, Castro also clarified her statement as regards the information that the Vice President was supposed to go to Kuwait. She said some of the videos online were supposedly edited.

''Okay, so in other words iyong sinabi natin na wala tayong impormasyon, at may napabalita na siya ay pumunta or pupunta sa Kuwait, na-edit po iyon,'' Castro said.

(In other words, our statement that we don't have any information as regards her Kuwait trip was edited.) 

''So, ganiyan sila gumawa ng pekeng balita kaya nagiging paulit-ulit na source of fake news ang Bise Presidente dahil sa ganiyang mga klase na video na ini-edit—edited! Fake news again!'' she added. 

(That's how they create fake news, which later makes the Vice President a source of fake news. That's because of the videos being edited.) 

Last week, Castro said the administration had no information as to the whereabouts of the Vice President.

In a press conference in New Delhi, Castro said her last authorized travel was her trip to the Netherlands and South Korea. —VAL, GMA Integrated News