Marcos on Sara tirades: You can’t force anyone to love you

MANILA, Philippines — Not even the most powerful man in the land can demand affection.

President Marcos chose to be economical with his words in reacting to Vice President Sara Duterte’s string of tirades against him, including a demand for him to resign because of the alleged “abuses” of his administration.

“You know, I hear about them, but I don’t really even have a response,” Marcos told reporters at the close of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi on Sunday. “If she feels very angry, I suppose, with what’s happening to her, and I am the target of that anger, or the main target of that anger, what can I do? You cannot force anyone to love you.”

Marcos and Duterte were close political allies, running under the now defunct UniTeam coalition and winning by a landslide in the 2022 national elections. But their relationship has soured, a political divorce that became evident when Duterte resigned as education secretary and vice chairperson of the government’s anti-insurgency task force in June 2024. A series of political shockwaves, including Duterte’s impeachment and the arrest of her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, over alleged crimes against humanity, further strained the Vice President’s ties with the Marcos administration.  Duterte is undergoing impeachment trial for allegedly misuse of confidential funds, committing bribery, amassing unexplained wealth and issuing death threats against Marcos, First Lady Liza Marcos and former House speaker Martin Romualdez.  Last Friday, the Quezon City Regional Trial Court issued an arrest warrant against Duterte over her grave threat charges but she posted a P360,000 bail the following day.

In remarks delivered before her supporters over the weekend, Duterte said she would continue to call for the resignation of Marcos, describing him as “shameless, corrupt, an addict.”

President Marcos celebrated his birthday yesterday with a throng of supporters during a “Salo-salo sa Palasyo” at Malacañang.

Marcos, who turned 69 on Sunday, was in New Delhi over the weekend.

“You have made this a very, very, very happy birthday for me. Thank you very much. We love you very much,” Marcos said during the celebration at the Kalayaan Grounds.

Marcos was accompanied by the First Lady.

The guests were treated with magic shows and cultural performances.

At a press conference in New Delhi, Marcos wished he could spend more time with his family, noting that their schedules often do not match.

“I suppose for my family, it’s simple. I wish I saw more of all of you. And it’s not just my children, including the First Lady. Our schedules don’t match very well. We don’t see each other that much either. I wish I could spend more time with all of you, number one,” the President said.

The Chief Executive also wished that the reforms he started would continue beyond his administration.

“We will continue to make it better,” he said.

President Marcos is happy that the Supreme Court has overturned the 2018 graft conviction of his mother, former first lady Imelda Marcos.

“I’m glad that that case is over. It’s been hanging over our heads for about 40 years. All those cases were filed in 1986, and that’s how long it’s taken,” Marcos said at a press conference in New Delhi on Sunday.

“I’m happy that, you know, she doesn’t have to be worried about it any longer, because she does worry about these cases. Yeah, I’m glad especially for my mother,” Marcos said.

In a 50-page ruling penned by Associate Justice Rodil Zalameda, the SC’s First Division overturned the conviction by the Sandiganbayan of the former first lady on seven counts of graft involving her alleged financial interests in private foundations in Switzerland.

In 2018, the anti-graft court found the former first lady, who turned 97 last July, guilty of seven counts of graft, sentencing her from six years and one month to 11 years of imprisonment for each count.

The cases stemmed from allegations that the President’s mother, while serving as governor of Metro Manila and holding other government positions during the administration of her late husband, former president Ferdinand Marcos Sr., maintained financial interests in several private foundations based in Switzerland.

The President, meanwhile, dismissed claims the high court’s decision could influence the selection of the next chief justice.

“No, no. That’s the first time I made any connection between the choice of Chief Justice and no, that’s never been, that will never enter our thinking in any way,” Marcos said.

The speculation came after three members of the SC First Division that decided the case have been considered among the frontrunners to succeed Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo. They are Associate Justices Jhosep Lopez, Henri Jean Paul Inting and Mario Lopez.

The SC found inadmissible as evidence the Swiss documents that were the main basis of the prosecution’s allegation that the former first lady had a financial and pecuniary interest in the foundations.

It said the Sandiganbayan erred in considering the documents as authenticated, as these did not satisfy provisions under Rule 132 of the Rules of Court in the authentication of private documents. — Helen Flores

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