AT 2:21 pm June 19, 2024, Vice President Sara Duterte has ceased to be part of the official family of the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. She personally went to Malacañang to tender her resignation as Secretary of the Department of Education and as Vice-Chairperson of the NTF-ELCAC effective July 19, 2024.
Vice-President Duterte was one of the few bright lights of an administration that started strong but has gone terribly wrong.
At the time of her resignation, she got the highest approval rating in all the credible surveys while the Department of Education which she headed until her resignation was the most trusted and best performing agency under the Marcos administration.
On top of this, this is the runaway leader in all the surveys for the most preferred candidate in the 2028 presidential elections. As it turned out, this sort of became her undoing in an administration where excellence is an exemption.
She was hailed to court over confidential and intelligence discretionary funds, threatened with impeachment in Congress, included belatedly in the charges before the International Criminal Court and questioned by the Commission on Audit. What makes it painful and regrettable is that the baseless accusations against her were all initiated and sustained by allies of President Marcos.
All the while, the Filipino people suffer from the worsening economy, deteriorating peace and order, unchecked graft and corruption, government incompetence and real and present danger of war. Instead of addressing these pressing concerns, the Marcos administration has resorted to massive payouts that further drain already badly depleted government coffers.
Alarmed and concerned, former President Rodrigo Duterte was forced to come out of retirement to address these pressing issues including the President’s drug problem and more importantly to denounce the bogus people’s initiative which is nothing but a shameless scheme to change the Constitution not just to guarantee the lifting and extension of term limits but to perpetuate the ruling family’s grip on the presidency.
This led to the birth of the Hakbang ng Maisug, a timely step in the Filipino people’s struggle for transparency, accountability, peace and security. After the opening salvo in Davao City, the Marcos administration scrambled to meet the challenge. Instead of shaping up, it resorted to suppression of the people’s rights to free expression and seek redress to grievances.
Abusing the powers and resources at its disposal, the Marcos administration denied application for rallies in Bustos, Bulacan, Dumaguete City and Tacloban City. Davao del Norte Gov. Edwin Jubahib and Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama were suspended after allowing rallies in Tagum City and Cebu City respectively.
The Marcos administration, however, showed its worst in Tacloban City, the stronghold of Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and hometown of the mother of President Marcos. Unlike in Bustos and Dumaguete where only the proposed rally sites were sealed off, all the public parks were turned into virtual depots of trucks and heavy equipment. Among others, all the plane tickets on the rally date and a day before were suspiciously sold out.
The suppression of these basic rights enshrined by the Constitution in the Maisug rallies and all forms of protest against the Marcos administration’s abuse of power and resources will not succeed. For as long as the needed reforms particularly those addressing the basic needs of the people remain unaddressed, the voices of the brave will not be silenced.
With the resignation of Vice President Duterte from the Marcos administration, the last façade of law and order and public service has been removed. Worse, the threat of war looms bigger as the Marcos administration sees it as a justifiable option to declare Martial Law and remain in power.
As the nation’s second highest-ranking public official, the most credible and popular one at that, Vice-President Duterte is in the best position to lead the people’s voice against the excesses and abuses of the Marcos administration and to prevent war from breaking out.
In line with this, the Hakbang ng Maisug Coalition for Transparency, Accountability, Peace and Security therefore extends this invitation to Vice-President Duterte to take over the helm in this historic and heroic struggle at this crucial juncture of our nation’s history.
We stand solidly behind the courageous decision of VP Sara.
The time has come for all equally patriotic and peace-loving Filipinos to make a stand and save our country from the morally bankrupt Marcos administration.
No to Cha-Cha!
No to Martial Law!
No to War!
Transparency, Accountability, Peace and Security Now!
Defend the Flag!
Mabuhay si Vice-President Inday!
Editor’s Note: This article has been sourced from the TAPS Coalition Facebook Page.
