Panelo dismisses Madriaga allegations as ‘pure fiction’

Legal counsel for Vice President Sara Duterte on Wednesday rejected allegations made by Ramil Madriga, calling them “pure fiction”.

“This is precisely what I meant when I said that the more Ramil Madriga speaks, the better it becomes for Vice President Sara Duterte’s defense,” lawyer Salvador Paolo A. Panelo, Jr. said in a statement.

A handwritten letter by Madriga dated 11 April 2026 allegedly contains claims of a secret term-sharing deal, a planned ouster, and assassination plots against President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr..

The lawyer added that Madriga’s statements undermine his own credibility even before any formal testimony. 

“I have repeatedly said that making Madriga testify would just reveal his lack of credibility and expose his lies. He has now succeeded in doing exactly that even before uttering a single word under oath in the House Justice Committee,” Panelo said.