VP Sara Duterte says ties with Imee Marcos ‘beyond politics’

Metro Manila, Philippines - Vice President Sara Duterte on Friday said her friendship with Senator Imee Marcos is “beyond politics,” adding that she keeps an open line of communication with the presidential sister.

“I would like to believe that the friendship is already beyond politics,” Duterte said in an interview at The Hague. “Dahil sa mga nangyari, hindi magandang nangyari. At meron pa rin kaming open lines of communication.”

[Translation: Because of everything that happened, all the unfortunate things that happened. And we still have open lines of communication.]

This comes amid the ongoing Senate probe launched by Sen. Marcos, which is looking into the arrest and turn over of former President Rodrigo Duterte to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity charges.

Duterte said she has also been invited by the senator to attend the hearings but was unable to attend due to her “hectic” schedule in the Netherlands.

“I am open to future hearings in the event that she needs my input in the committee hearings that she is conducting in the Senate,” Duterte said.

The vice president previously denied that she endorsed Sen. Marcos for the latter’s bid to extend her senatorial term in the upcoming 2025 midterm elections.