Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez on Friday denied attacking any administration ally, particularly Vice President Sara Duterte. Romualdez, who served as one of Duterte’s two campaign managers during the May 2022 national elections, admitted that he in fact “misses” the Vice President.
“On my part, I have not attacked any ally of this administration. Idon’t know what she’s talking about,” Romualdez said at a news briefing on Friday.
The Speaker made the statement in response to Duterte’s statement last Wednesday that many people “do not understand why he is attacking” allies of the administration.
To that, Romualdez said. “For the Vice President, I respect the Vice President. As my Vice President, as my Secretary of Education, she has my full support.”
“I don’t know what I have said or done to attack her. Please identify those acts, any actuation,” added the leader of the 310-strong House of Representatives.
“Kung nakikinig siya sa mga marites o kung sinong senadora dyan, it’s up to her (If she opts to listen to rumor-mongers or whoever lady senator, it’s up to her),” he said.
“To be honest, I miss her because we used to be together all the time, but—our work now, she as the Vice President and secretary of DepEd (Department of Education), and me being the Speaker, we don’t see each other as much.”
“So of course, I miss working together with her,” the Leyte 1st district congressman said of Duterte.
Late last year, Romualdez described his relationship with the Vice President as “very good.”
“As they always say, there will always be differences, but we will always work towards resolving those differences for the service of the Filipino people,” he said.