Vice President Sara Duterte's constant participation in prayer rallies against the government sends a "wrong signal" to Filipinos who put her and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in power in the pursuit of unity, a House leader said Monday.

These prayer rallies are "merely distractions," as Deputy Speaker David Suarez put it into words.

Suarez is one with his peers that Duterte should be more prudent in participating in such an assembly, where the administration, which he claimed "is doing very well," is being bombarded with allegations and threats.

"I don't think it will help the progress of our country. What we want to show is stability within the country, and having noise such as this is not helpful, especially since we're on track towards recovery from a pandemic," Suarez pointed out.

Participants of that rally, he added, should center their "attention and energies on efforts that would help the country grow and stabilize."

Duterte drew criticism for attending a "prayer rally" in Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila last week in support of Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, a long-time family friend, who is now the subject of serious allegations of human trafficking and sexual abuse in the Senate.

The House is also on the hunt for the embattled pastor for his continued defiance to attend a hearing on alleged gross franchise violations of the Sonshine Media Network International, which lawmakers believed he is the "beneficial owner."

The supposed prayer rally, however, took a sharp turn, morphing into an anti-government rally directing threats against Marcos.

Then-president Rodrigo Duterte took part in the event and, for the nth time, took a swipe again at his successor.

The candid Duterte insinuated that Marcos, who has traveled to 25 countries since he assumed office in June 2022, is having foreign trips or state visits merely for leisure—an allegation swiftly disputed by Marcos.

"Let's add a little delicacy to the words we used because it's not good to the ears, especially to the youth," Suarez remarked.

However, while 1-Rider Partylist Rep. Ramon Gutierrez acknowledged that attending such a gathering is everybody's right to freedom of speech, he still emphasized the need for careful consideration of the messaging conveyed in the event.

"I suppose the attendance of certain personalities at the rally could always be construed as a personal exercise of that right. But given the positions that we are in, we have to consider, of course, the intricacies that are involved," Gutierrez said.

In the same vein, Malasakit at Bayanihan Rep. Anthony Golez said that although this kind of progressive rally is being allowed by the Philippine democratic government, it should be exercised with prudence.

"They have to be responsible with what they are doing. If they violate a law, then they can face justice," he said.

At a prayer rally against Charter change in Davao City back in January, ex-president Duterte also accused Marcos of being a "bangag" and a "drug addict," whose name, he alleged, was on the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency's drug watch list.