FACT CHECK: No Marcos order for Sara Duterte to resign

Claim: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered Vice President and Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Sara Duterte to resign. 

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The false video was uploaded on June 5, 2024, by a YouTube channel with 30,500 subscribers. As of writing, it has been viewed over 4,110 times with 147 likes and 57 comments. 

The video’s thumbnail shows images of Marcos, who appears to hold the supposed order, his wife Liza Araneta-Marcos, and Duterte, with the text “Pinatalsik sa pwesto. Ito ang matinding utos ni Pangulong Marcos.” (Removed from post. This is the serious order from President Marcos.)

The video’s title reads: “Lagot na VP Sara namutla. Di nakaligtas sa pasabog ni Pres Marcos. Matinding utos pirmado nilabas na” (VP Sara in big trouble, turning pale and unable to escape President Marcos’ bombshell. A serious order has been signed and released.)

The facts: Marcos has not released any orders for Duterte to resign. There is also no official announcement from Marcos’ verified Facebook page or the Office of the President about such a resignation order. 

Duterte also remains the current education secretary and the country’s vice president, as seen on the websites of the DepEd and Office of the Vice President. 

According to Sections 2 and 3 of Article XI of the 1987 Constitution, the vice president may be removed from office through impeachment. An impeachment complaint may be filed by any member of the House of Representatives. A Filipino citizen may also file a complaint, which should be endorsed by a House member.

An impeachment court will convene once one-third of the House votes in favor of the Articles of Impeachment. A two-thirds vote of Senate members is required to remove an impeachable official. (READ: FAST FACTS: How does impeachment work?)

Duterte’s absence from RA 11997 signing: The misleading video stems from Duterte’s absence during the June 3 signing ceremony in Malacañang of Republic Act 11997 or the Kabalikat sa Pagtuturo Act, which will raise the annual teaching allowance of public school teachers from P5,000 to P10,000. Duterte’s office did not give any reason behind her absence.

In Marcos’ speech during the signing ceremony, he hailed the Vice President and the women and men of the Department of Education for laying down “the building blocks of a modern and responsive educational system.”

No evidence: The misleading video did not provide evidence to support its claim, merely showing commentary from broadcaster Mike Abe. 

In the original video, uploaded to Abe’s Facebook account on June 4, Abe did not mention that Marcos ordered Duterte to resign. The broadcaster only cited an unnamed Cabinet secretary who said Duterte is often not included in Cabinet meetings due to the feud between the Marcoses and the Dutertes.

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Marcos-Duterte rift: Claims regarding the supposed expulsion of Duterte from her post have surfaced amid an ongoing rift between the Marcos and Duterte camps, which began when former president Rodrigo Duterte accused Marcos of drug use. 

In April, First Lady Marcos admitted being hurt when Vice President Duterte went to a protest in Davao to oppose efforts to amend the 1987 Constitution and for allegedly laughing at the elder Duterte’s comment calling her husband “bangag“ (high on drugs).

The Vice President addressed these remarks on April 22, saying that she and the President would rather discuss the matter privately, adding that the first lady’s feelings “have nothing to do” with her duties as a government official.

Despite the clashes between the two families, Marcos previously said that he does not see any reason to remove Duterte from his Cabinet. He recently greeted Duterte on her birthday on May 31, acknowledging her “love and hard work” for the country. 

Previous fact-checks: Rappler has debunked claims regarding Duterte’s alleged resignation and expulsion from her posts:

• FACT CHECK: Sara Duterte is still VP, DepEd secretary
• FACT CHECK: Congress did not remove Sara Duterte as VP

–  Larry Chavez/Rappler.com

Larry Chavez is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

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