Sara Duterte no hand in Madriaga ‘death threat’ —lawyer

Vice President Sara Duterte has nothing to do with the alleged threat to the life of Ramil Madriaga, her legal counsel Paolo Panelo Jr. said Friday. 

In a statement, Panelo said Duterte’s camp is actually joining calls to provide Madriaga with additional protection.

“We want him alive and in the pink of health because he’s the only one who can admit that he made up his testimony against the Vice President, and identify his handlers,” Panelo said. 

“If he stands firm on his testimony, we want him to come forward and add details to his overly general and obviously fabricated accusations, so we can shatter his testimony even more,” he added. 

The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) on Thursday clarified that the alleged threat to Madriaga's life stemmed from an altercation with another person deprived of liberty at the Taguig City Jail.

This came after Madriaga’s camp sought the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) assistance to confirm the nature of the alleged death threat from an inmate to their client, the inmate's identity, and whether protective measures were undertaken.

NBI

NBI Director Melvin Matibag also said on Friday that some of their personnel have already been deployed to guarantee Madriaga's safety.

"Humingi ng tulong and base sa mandato namin we have to respond to that, that was Wednesday. Nagpadala na ako ng tao ng afternoon. Binantayan na sila roon at hanggang ngayon may ahente tayong nagbabantay, in coordination with the BJMP," Matibag said.

(They sought help, and based on our mandate, we had to respond to that. That was Wednesday. I already sent our personnel that afternoon. They have been secured there, and until now we have an agent guarding them, in coordination with the BJMP.)

"Hiniwalay na namin si Madriaga at tinanong namin kung sino ang comfortable siya nakasama, 'yun lang ang isasama roon," he added.

(We separated Madriaga and asked who he was comfortable with, that's the only persons to include in his cell.)

He also said that they are now validating the personality of the person who allegedly caused physical harm to Madriaga.

"Detention prisoner siya ng Pasay, we're trying to look into it bakit bigla siyang nalipat sa kampo ng Bagong Diwa kung saan naka-detain si Madriaga," he said.

(He is a detention prisoner in Pasay, we're trying to look into why he was suddenly transferred to Camp Bagong Diwa, where Madriaga is detained.)

"7610 'yung kaso ng tao na nag-ano sa kaniya, pero malaking tao siya. Then when we checked on the backgrounds, family of ex-military. 'Pag iniisip-isip ko,  kailangan talagang tahiin nang maayos ang imbestigasyon na ito," he added.

(Violation of 7610 was the case of the person who did something to him, he is a hefty man. When we checked his background, he was from a family of ex-military. When I think about it, this investigation must be done properly.)

Matibag confirmed a request was made to transfer Madriaga from the Taguig City Jail to the NBI detention facility. However, he said jurisdictional requirements still have to be met by the court.

Claims

Duterte on Wednesday filed a perjury complaint against Madriaga, her alleged former aide who claimed that her campaign was funded by drug dealers and Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).

To recall, Madriaga claimed in December 2025 that drug dealers and POGO operations funded the Inday Sara Duterte is My President (ISIP) Pilipinas national campaign and other parallel groups. 

His allegations have been included in an impeachment complaint against the Vice President.

Duterte, however, refuted having a personal relationship with Madriaga, stressing that he has offered no proof or documents to support his “bare allegations.” 

The Vice President further alleged that Madriaga appears to be “acting out of desperation” to secure his release from detention, and is working to undermine her possible plans to run for president. —VAL, GMA Integrated News