Senator Imee Marcos on Thursday suggested that the recent arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte may have been politically motivated, pointing to a series of events that she believes form part of broader efforts targeting the Duterte family.

According to Marcos, the eldest sister of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the failed People’s Initiative—which aimed to amend the 1987 Constitution—was an early move to block Vice President Sara Duterte, who remains a frontrunner for the 2028 presidential elections.

"The plan to bring down the Dutertes (Rodrigo and Sara) is expanding. It’s expanding because of the dates — if you look at it, the PI — do you remember the dismantling of our Constitution through the method of bribery by AKAP to get signatures? That seems like it was Plan A,” Senator Marcos told reporters in an ambush interview.

The PI, reportedly pushed by the House of Representatives, was marred by controversy over allegations that government funds were used as payoffs to gather signatures for the petition.

Marcos also pointed to the impeachment case against Vice President Duterte as “Plan B” by those allegedly seeking to ruin her image.

“The impeachment of VP Sara, I cannot understand. It seems like Plan B was the impeachment, which is still ongoing,” she said.

On 5 February, a total of 215 lawmakers—more than two-thirds of the House of Representatives—supported a resolution to impeach Duterte.

The Senate has yet to deliberate on the impeachment case. Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero said the upper chamber will convene the impeachment court on 30 July, despite public clamor for immediate action.

For Duterte to be convicted, the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, must secure two-thirds of the votes—or at least 16 out of the current 23 senators.

One of the impeachment articles accuses Duterte of threatening the First Couple—President Marcos and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos—as well as Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Also among the seven articles of impeachment are allegations of misuse and malversation of confidential funds appropriated to the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education, which Duterte headed for more than two years.

Senator Marcos also said the 11 March arrest of Duterte was part of a broader campaign to bring down the former president’s family.

"There were different plans, but it’s clear that the arrest was not spur of the moment on the morning of March 11. That’s not true. It’s not believable,” she stressed.

Duterte was arrested on 11 March at Ninoy Aquino International Airport upon returning from a trip to Hong Kong. On the same day, he was transferred to The Hague, Netherlands, where the International Criminal Court (ICC) is based.

Duterte is suspected of murder qualified as a crime against humanity, allegedly committed in the Philippines between 1 November 2011 and 16 March 2019.

According to government data, at least 7,000 people were killed during Duterte's drug war. However, both local and international human rights groups dispute this figure, asserting that the true number of victims could be as high as 30,000.