Malacañang wished Vice President Sara Duterte luck following her announcement she is running for president in 2028.

At the same time, however, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro highlighted the controversies surrounding Duterte, including her public apology for the shortcomings of the administration she is a part of.

“The President heard the announcement and said, ‘Good luck.’ He also heard her regrets and apology to the Filipino people,” Castro told reporters on Wednesday.

At her press conference, Duterte said she realized early in the administration that some of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s campaign promises were not fulfilled. She sought forgiveness for helping Marcos win in 2022.

In response, Castro said Marcos’ victory was ultimately the people’s choice.

“Let’s remember the people elected President Marcos Jr. Both worked together under the UniTeam, so the President alone shouldn’t take the credit. What Filipinos see now is who is actually working — a working President compared to the Vice President,” she said.

Duterte also said she could not support the 2025 national budget, which she described as riddled with corruption that prompted her to leave the Cabinet when she was Education secretary.

She said that since 2023 she anticipated that her distancing herself from the administration would trigger impeachment complaints against her.

Castro, however, pushed back: “If there was any looming impeachment, it was because of her own actions. If she had done nothing unconstitutional or anomalous, there wouldn’t have been complaints filed against her.”

Pundits pointed out the early announcement of her presidential bid could be linked to the impeachment complaints.

“She may be positioning herself to claim that the impeachment is a political attack because she’s the frontrunner for 2028,” said Prof. Dennis Coronacion, head of the Political Science Department at the University of Santo Tomas.

Gabriela Rep. Sarah Elago and Kabataan Rep. Renee Co said Duterte’s announcement distracted from the serious questions.

“The real issue is where the funds of the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education went, how they will be returned, and who will be held accountable. Anything else is a distraction,” Elago said.

Castro cited the flooding issues during the administration of her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, highlighting the uncompleted and ineffective flood control projects.

She urged the Vice President to acknowledge these failures instead of blaming them on the current administration.

She said Sara Duterte should apologize for her missteps, including the misuse of government funds, unreviewed DepEd programs, undelivered school materials, spoiled food for students, and personal trips costing millions in public funds.

“She must apologize for prioritizing attacks instead of work, for promising to lower rice prices but not acting, for unaccounted for student vouchers worth hundreds of millions, and for missing or spoiled school materials. These are just some of the issues she should own up to,” Castro said.