VICE President Sara Z. Duterte produced the evidence herself on the alleged grave threats she made against President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, Manila Rep. Joel Chua said on Saturday night.
Chua referred to Duterte’s public remarks in November 2024, during a video press conference, where she said she had instructed someone to kill the three officials if she were killed first. She also said “no joke,” while visibly angry and hurling expletives in connection with the congressoinal probe into her alleged misuse of confidential funds.
He said the vice president’s statements fall under what he described as res ipsa loquitur, meaning the act or statement is self-explanatory and does not require further elaboration.
“Punta naman tayo, ‘yung threat. Di ba, isang araw nagising tayo, ‘yung pinagmumura si Presidente. Sinabi ma papatayin. Eh ‘yun lang eh. Ang tawag namin sa law diyan, res ipsa loquitur. Ibig sabihin, the thing speaks for itself,” Chua said on ONE News’ “Politika All The Way”.
The videos and statements were authenticated by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and likewise verified by journalists who attended the press conference. This led the NBI to file a complaint for inciting to sedition and grave threats before the Department of Justice (DoJ) for investigation.
Chua said the committee also considered the context of the alleged threats, including whether the vice president had the capacity or intent to carry them out, as well as psychological and situational factors.
He pointed to questions on whether there was any history of violence or capability behind the statement, as well as the seriousness of the target of the alleged threat.
“Titignan mo rin ano, ito ba nagmumurang ‘to, may kapasidad ba siya na totohanin ‘yung kanyang pagbabanta?… May history of violence ba ito? Meron bang kapasidad yung pamilya nila gumawa niya ito?” he said.
The fact that her father, former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, is currently detained by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on crimes against humanity charges over his drug war campaign, Chua said, already raises concerns about their capacity to commit similar acts.
“At nakikita na naman natin na may mga instances talaga na medyo may mga allegations sa kanila na medyo bayolente,” he added.
He also noted that the alleged threat was directed at the head of state, which he said raises national security concerns.
“So when you say head of the state, ibig sabihin ‘yan ang nagre-represent sa buong Pilipinas… So ibig sabihin national security concern ‘yan para pagbantaan mo,” Chua said.
Despite the numerous opportunities given to the vice president to respond to the allegations and present counter-evidence, Chua said she and her lawyers did not attend the Committee on Justice’s clarificatory hearings and instead turned to social media, statements, and press conferences, which he stressed only amounted to non-answers.
“Sa tatlong hearing, ilang beses silang pinatawag, ni anino hindi dumating. Ano naman ang kanilang ebidensya para i-rebut ang bawat [alegasyon]. Kailangan kontrahin mo, dahil kung di mo kokontrahin, nagmumukhang totoo,” Chua said.
“Eh saan sila pupunta? Sa media. Kung saan saan. Sisiraan kami sa Facebook. Eh wala namang bilang ‘yun,” he added.
He also dismissed public statements made outside the House proceedings, saying the committee would rely only on official records and evidence submitted during hearings.
“Siyempre kami, magba-base kami sa committee kung ano yung official record,” he said.
Chua noted that while the vice president’s camp had earlier called for due process through a full hearing of the case, they had not consistently participated in the impeachment process.
“As far as I remember, sinasabi nila, ‘give us our day in court.’ We’re giving them their days in court,” Chua said. “Pero never naman silang uma-appear.”
