Sara Duterte responded to Claire Castro’s recent statement
Vice President Sara Duterte advised Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro to be “professional” after the latter dismissed as “baseless” and “nonsense” the VP’s statement implying that President Bongbong Marcos seemingly supports the International Criminal Court (ICC).
To recall, Duterte previously said that the ICC is a “puppet” of the President and former Senator Antonio Trillanes III, who is one of her critics.
When interviewed in Davao City following a Kadayawan Festival Thanksgiving Mass, Duterte was asked to respond to Castro’s previous statements, based on the report from Inquirer.
“Uulitin ko ha, si Claire Castro is a spokesperson of the President and the Office of the President. Hindi ko alam kung kaninong spokesperson siya pero by the fact na spokesperson ka at mayroong seal ng Office of the President diyan, dapat maging professional ka sa mga sinasabi mo,” Duterte said.
The Vice President also stressed that representing the Office of the President limits Castro’s freedom to express personal opinions. Duterte noted that a spokesperson does not have the liberty to speak her opinion because it means that she is speaking for herself.
“Kapag may seal sa likod mo, sa harap mo, kung ano ‘yung professionalism na hinihingi galing doon sa opisina na ‘yun, ‘yun dapat ang ipakita at ibigay mo sa taong bayan,” the Vice President said.
Earlier this Thursday, Castro mocked Duterte for not knowing about the government’s proposed Pax Silica initiative, after the vice president declined to comment on it during an interview last month in The Hague.
Meanwhile, just recently, VP Sara Duterte visited her allies, Former Anakalusugan Party-list Rep. Mike Defensor, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, and Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, who are currently detained at the Quezon City Jail.
After the visit, Defensor expressed assurance to the Vice President, stressing that she need not worry about them.