Sara Duterte to run for president in 2028

Vice President Sara Duterte announced Wednesday that she will run for president in the 2028 national elections. 

"Ako si Sara Duterte tatakbo bilang pangulo ng Pilipinas  (I am Sara Duterte, I will run for president of the Philippines)," Duterte said in a press conference.

Before the press conference, Duterte ordered the removal of the logo of the Office of the Vice President in the podium. She did not answer any questions from reporters after her speech.

She said she was taking full responsibility for her political decisions and acknowledged public frustration over persistent national issues.

“Mga kababayan, humihingi ako ng paumanhin sa inyong lahat. Patawad kung tinulungan kong mahalal si BBM bilang Pangulo ng ating bansa (My fellow Filipinos, I ask for your forgiveness. I am sorry for helping elect BBM as President of our country),” she said.

The Vice President said President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. failed to uphold campaign promises and sworn duties.

She also said that she stepped down from her Cabinet post after deciding she could not support what she described as a 2025 national budget “tainted with corruption.” She claimed she had anticipated that her resignation would eventually lead to impeachment.

“Dahil hindi ko kinayang maging bahagi ng 2025 national budget na tadtad ng katiwalian, pinili kong umalis sa Gabinete (Because I could not bear to be part of a 2025 national budget riddled with corruption, I chose to leave the Cabinet),” she said.

Duterte said that as early as the first months of the administration, she had already begun questioning what she described as a lack of integrity in governance.

Rising prices, flooding, crime

Throughout the five-page speech, Duterte listed what she called the administration’s failures: continued flooding, rising prices of basic goods, food insecurity, weak healthcare systems, crumbling infrastructure, and the persistence of crime, illegal drugs, and terrorism.

She also criticized what she described as the absence of a clear and independent foreign policy, saying the country risks being caught between global superpowers.

“Patuloy ang pagtaas ng presyo ng mga pangunahing bilihin habang nananatiling kapos ang kita ng bawat pamilya (The prices of basic goods continue to rise while family incomes remain insufficient),” she said.

Political attacks

Duterte further claimed politically motivated investigations and repeated accusations were designed to damage her reputation, including what she described as “scripted” congressional inquiries.

“Matagal na akong inaatake gamit ang buong makinarya ng kapangyarihan (I have long been attacked using the full machinery of power),” she said.

While she said she was not afraid for herself, Duterte expressed concern for the country’s future, particularly for younger generations.

“May takot ako para sa ating mga anak. May takot ako para sa mga susunod na henerasyon (I am afraid for our children. I am afraid for the next generation),” she said.

Duterte said her candidacy is an offer of service rather than an appeal for sympathy.

“I cannot kneel before each and every Filipino to beg for forgiveness. Instead, I offer my life, my strength, and my future in the service of our nation,” she said.

Impeachment complaints

On January 29, Duterte said that the government should “move on” after the Supreme Court affirmed its ruling that declared the articles of impeachment against her as unconstitutional.

But on February 2, two new impeachment complaints were filed against Duterte and these were accepted by House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil.

Garafil said on February 6 that the two impeachment complaints against Duterte were already transmitted to the Office of Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III. Garafil said the documents were forwarded in the afternoon after her office completed receipt and verification of the complaints and their endorsements.

Meanwhile, on February 9, religious groups, priests, and lawyers filed a third impeachment complaint against Duterte for alleged betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, among others, over the supposed misuse of at least P612 million worth of confidential funds.

It was transmitted to the Speaker's office on February 10.

'Calculated move'

Members of the Makabayan bloc criticized Duterte's announcement that she intends to run for president in 2028, calling it a "distraction" and a "calculated" move ahead of the looming impeachment proceedings against her.

Senate President Vicente "Tito" Sotto III said senators are expected to remain impartial should the Senate convene as an impeachment court and they become senator-judges. 

"The senators are expected to be impartial always, no matter who is going to be charged or kanino mang articles of impeachment ang sumampa sa amin. We are expected to be impartial. So kahit kandidato, hindi kandidato, kahit sino pa 'yan, it doesn't matter," Sotto told reporters. 

(The senators are expected to be impartial always, no matter who is going to be charged or whose articles of impeachment will be transmitted to us. We are expected to be impartial. So even if that person is a candidate or not, no matter who h/she is, it doesn't matter.) 

2028 plans

House Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega V of La Union said the Vice President's announcement almost two years before the 2028 elections just proves that she broke her Uniteam alliance with President Marcos for ambition, not principles.

“The announcement removes any ambiguity. The distancing was not rooted in governance reform. It was part of a larger electoral trajectory. Succession politics reshape alliances. That is the reality. If corruption and inefficiency were the real reasons, those concerns should have been documented while she was inside the Cabinet,” Ortega said.

He said the turning point in the alliance was the controversy surrounding confidential funds allocated to the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and to the Department of Education (DepEd) during her tenure as secretary.

For Senator Imee Marcos, the Vice President has the "solution" for the problems that the country currently faces.

Senator Robin Padilla, meanwhile, floated the possibility of a "girl power" tandem in the 2028 national elections, teasing Senator Marcos as a potential running mate of Duterte. 

Marcos refused to directly answer when asked by Senate reporters if she was open to be Duterte's running mate, but said she just follows whatever Duterte says.

Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, a staunch ally of the Duterte family, said he would fully support Duterte's decision to run for president.

"Buo po ang aming suporta sa kanyang desisyon na tumakbo. Ang sa akin lang naman dito, mabalik sa normal na pamumuhay ang bawat Pilipino," Go said in an ambush interview. 

(We fully support her decision to run. What I only want is for the life of every Filipino to go back to normal.) —AOL/ VDV, GMA Integrated News