Palace: Duterte 'selfish' for calling Marcos ouster 'so his daughter can take over'

'No motive is more selfish than calling for a sitting president to be overthrown so that your daughter can take over.''

This was the strong response of Malacañang on the call made by former President Rodrigo Duterte to the Philippine military to protect the Constitution instead of supporting President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr., whom he accused anew of being a drug addict. 

Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said Duterte is willing to ''go to great and evil lengths, such as insulting our professional armed forces by asking them to betray their oath, for his plan to succeed.''

''The former president should respect the Constitution, not disobey it. He should desist from being as irresponsible as he has become,'' Bersamin said in a statement.
 
''Nakakagulat ang garapalang panawagan ni dating Pangulong Duterte sa ating sandatahang lakas na maglunsad ng kudeta laban kay Pangulong Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.,'' he added.

Bersamin vowed that the Marcos administration would not shrink from its sworn duty to govern and manage the affairs of the Filipino nation that is according to the 1987 Constitution and the rule of law.

''It will defend its legacy before the Filipino People only by lawful means. The state will act resolutely to go against all unlawful attempts and challenges,'' Bersamin said.

Bersamin emphasized that this ''power grabbing'' is unacceptable.

''Hindi katanggap-tanggap ang marahas na pang-aagaw ng kapangyarihan upang madaling maluklok bilang pangulo sa pamamagitan ng pagpaslang, panggugulo at pag-aalsa. Maghintay kayo sa tamang panahon, sumunod sa tamang pamamaraan,'' he said.

The Palace statement comes after Duterte took another jab at Marcos amid the tension between his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte and the Chief Executive. 

“There is a fractured governance sa Pilipinas ngayon (in the Philippines right now). Nobody can correct Marcos, nobody can correct Romualdez… There is no urgent remedy… It is only the military who can correct it,” Duterte said in a press conference late Tuesday.

Duterte also asked the military if it would continue to support Marcos if it knew he was a “drug addict.”

“Hanggang kailan kayo mag suporta ng drug addict na Presidente?” Duterte asked.

(Until when will you support an addict president?)

“I challenge the whole military kasi (because) they're supposed to be the protector of the constitution,” he added.

The response of President on the accusation of Duterte in January 2024 that he was a drug addict was: “I think it’s the fentanyl.”

In his press conference, Duterte also said the transfer of PhilHealth funds is a more pressing issue than her daughter's remark against Marcos, First Lady Louise ''Liza'' Araneta-Marcos, and Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez.

The former president was referring to the transfer of PhilHealth's "excess" funds of P89.9 billion to the National Treasury.

Meanwhile, The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has served the subpoena to Vice President Sara Duterte following her remark that she ordered someone to kill Marcos if an alleged plot against her succeeds.

—VAL, GMA Integrated News