Palace tells Sara Duterte to ‘level up’ defense over cash claims

Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro held a briefing at Malacañang on February 18, 2026.

STAR / Noel Pabalate

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang called out Vice President Sara Duterte over her recent public statements, urging her to address the allegations raised against her with concrete evidence rather than resorting to personal attacks and rhetorical evasions.

This came after Duterte, in her statement, said she does not know former police officer Rodulfo Gracioso and accused the Marcos administration of being “desperate” to bring her down.

In a message to reporters, Palace Press Secretary Claire Castro advised her to familiarize herself with basic logical fallacies.

“Maturuan sana ang Bise Presidente na matuto siyang sumagot ng may ebidensiya sa mga inaakusa sa kanya bago magturo ng iba,” Castro said.

(Hopefully, the Vice President can learn to answer the accusations against her with evidence before pointing fingers at others.)

“Uulit-ulitin natin para tumimo sa isipan... She needs to level up her defending skills so she can appear credible, if only for once," she added.

(We will keep repeating this so it sinks in... She needs to level up her defending skills so she can appear credible, if only for once.)

Castro’s remarks came in response to Duterte, who had denied allegations that she knew or accepted money from Gracioso, a former security aide for then-House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, while turning the accusations back against her critics.

“The desperation of the administration to bring me down, push for Charter Change, prevent the 2028 elections, and cling to power is becoming increasingly diabolical,” Duterte said.

Gracioso previously alleged that he made more than 20 deliveries of cash-filled suitcases totaling more than P2 billion to Vice President Sara Duterte and over P1 billion to detained former President Rodrigo Duterte.

The National Bureau of Investigation said that it is currently probing Gracioso’s claims.

Meanwhile, Velasco’s lawyer dismissed Gracioso’s claims of alleged unlawful acts by Velasco and his wife, calling the claims fabricated, logically inconsistent, and contradicted by verifiable facts.