Statement of Malacañang on VP Sara Duterte Criticizing PH Education
Malacañang hit back at Vice President Sara Duterte over her criticisms against the Philippine education amid her being a former DepEd secretary.
The Office of the Vice President or OVP previously confirmed the Kuwait trip of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte but stressed that it was an authorized travel that is in line with her mandate as a public servant. Furthermore, Duterte’s office also claimed that the Vice President does not use any public funds in all her overseas trips.
Duterte is currently the center of criticisms not only for her alleged misuse of the Confidential Funds of the offices she handled but as well as her frequent overseas trips. Previously, when asked about the possible violation that the Vice President may be committing with her frequent travels abroad, Malacañang said Duterte may be violating her obligations to the people.
On her side, Duterte also claimed that she continues to work even when she is out of the country and spending her own money for a personal trip. However, when dared by Malacañang to submit a report of her work, the Vice President declined saying it is not her obligation disclose details of her personal trips.
At the Hakbang ng Maisug event in Kuwait, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte claimed that the PH education alleged lags behind when it comes to modernization. She claimed that the country’s education is stuck in “paper and pencil” while other nations are already teaching their students with robotics and coding.
The Vice President also compared the reading skills of some Filipino students with those in other countries. According to her, kids as young as three (3) or four (4) years old in other countries already know how to read while some Filipino high school students still do not know how to read.
Vice Pres. Sara Duterte is a former secretary of the Department of Education from 2022 to 2024. Her statement elicited several reactions. Malacañang also recently hit back at the Vice President over her criticis,s towards the PH education.
Based on a post of Inquirer, Malacañang press officer Claire Castro claimed that the complaints of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte allegedly shows that she as a DepEd secretary is “a complete failure”. The Palace official stressed that Pres. Bongbong Marcos gave her a chance and trusted her in handling the education department for two (2) years.
“Binigyan po siya ng pagkakataon, pinagkatiwalaan po siya ng Pangulo since 2022 hanggang 2024 para maging DepEd secretary. Dalawang taon halos na siya ay dapat nagtrabaho,” Castro said.
The Malacañang press officer also stressed that whatever Vice Pres. Sara Duterte is complaining should have been solved by her when she was the DepEd secretary. Based on the post, she expressed that her complaints are only reflective of her performance when she was the chief of the education helm.
“Kung ano man ang kanyang nirereklamo dapat natupad na po sana niya ito sa kanyang panahon. Ang pagtitiwalang ito ay sa kanyang reklamo ngayon nag-rereflect lamang na bilang siya ay naging DepEd Secretary ay a complete failure,” the Palace official said.
Aside from Malacañang, a lawmaker in the House of Representatives also called Vice Pres. Sara Duterte as the “worst DepEd secretary ever” after she criticized the PH education being a former education secretary herself.