By Open Chronicle with agencies
A Philippine court has ordered the arrest of Vice President Sara Duterte over allegations that she publicly threatened to have President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos and another senior political figure assassinated, deepening one of the country’s most consequential political confrontations.
The arrest order, issued on Friday by the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, stems from remarks Duterte made during an online news conference in 2024, at a time when relations between the Duterte and Marcos political camps were rapidly deteriorating.
Duterte has denied wrongdoing, while her legal team has indicated that she intends to comply with the judicial process and seek bail rather than evade the authorities.
“She has no intention of evading the law and will continue to exercise all her legal remedies,” her lawyer, Paul Lawrence Lim, said in a statement.
Threats at the centre of the case
The case relates to comments in which Duterte said she had arranged for President Marcos, his wife and then House Speaker Martin Romualdez to be killed if she herself were assassinated.
The remarks immediately triggered concerns among Philippine security officials and prompted a criminal investigation.
Duterte subsequently argued that her comments had been taken out of context and were not intended as a direct threat against the president. She said they reflected concerns about her own personal security.
The controversy nevertheless became another major episode in the political breakdown between Duterte and Marcos, whose families had joined forces during the 2022 presidential election.
Their alliance helped deliver Marcos the presidency and Duterte the vice presidency, but the relationship subsequently fractured amid increasingly public disagreements and competing political ambitions.
Impeachment adds to Duterte’s legal pressure
The criminal proceedings come as Duterte also faces a major political battle.
The House of Representatives impeached her in May over accusations that included the alleged threats as well as claims involving financial irregularities.
Duterte has rejected the allegations against her.
The legal and political proceedings could have significant consequences for the country’s next presidential contest. Duterte has widely been viewed as a potential candidate in the 2028 election, when Marcos is due to leave office after completing the single six year presidential term permitted under the Philippine Constitution.
A conviction or removal from office could severely complicate, or potentially derail, those ambitions depending on the outcome of the proceedings and any penalties imposed.
Former allies become political rivals
The confrontation illustrates the dramatic collapse of the Marcos Duterte alliance that dominated the 2022 election.
Sara Duterte is the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte, whose political network remains influential in parts of the Philippines.
Marcos, meanwhile, is the son of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. The alliance between two of the country’s most powerful political families initially appeared capable of reshaping Philippine politics for years.
Instead, tensions over policy, political influence and the approaching succession battle have transformed the former partners into increasingly bitter rivals.
The arrest order now pushes that conflict further into the courts, ensuring that the struggle between two of the Philippines’ dominant political dynasties will remain central to national politics as the country moves closer to the 2028 presidential election.