Vice President Sara Duterte on Monday said the real pressure she feels is not the impeachment and criminal cases she is facing but the suffering of Filipinos, saying she is ashamed that she has done too little to ease their hardships.

Duterte said Filipinos should not worry or feel pressured by the legal battles against her, even as she accused the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of political harassment.

“Ang totoong pressure ay ang kahihiyan na napakaliit ng aking naitutulong sa pagdurusa ninyo ngayon,” Duterte said in a statement.

“Sa bawat paglangoy ninyo sa baha, sa kagutuman ng inyong mga anak, sa hirap na dinaranas ninyo dahil sa patuloy na pagtaas ng presyo ng mga bilihin nararamdaman kong hindi sapat ang aking nagagawa upang maibsan ang inyong paghihirap,” she added.

Duterte said she had received numerous messages from Filipinos expressing support and concern over her impeachment and the cases against her, but told them not to worry or feel pressured by her legal troubles.

Duterte also framed the hardships as a failure of governance, accusing President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and other officials of appearing to prioritize their own interests over the welfare of Filipinos.

“Ang totoong pressure ay ang maging isang opisyal ng gobyerno habang nakikita ko na si Marcos at ang ilan pang mga opisyal ay tila sariling interes lamang ang inuuna, sa halip na kapakanan ng bawat Pilipino,” she said.

Duterte singled out the peso’s decline as another source of pressure, saying it had reached P62.77 against the dollar. She also cited what she described as the public’s lost trust in government.

Duterte is also facing a separate criminal case after a Quezon City court issued a warrant for her arrest on three counts of grave threats. 

Duterte posted P360,000 bail on Saturday, following allegations stemming from her 2024 remarks involving Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and then-House Speaker Martin Romualdez. 

Duterte accused Marcos of having control over senators, prosecutors, judges and police, but said she was confident in fighting the cases with the help of numerous lawyers.

“Hawak man ni Marcos ang mga senador, fiscal, huwes, at mga pulis, napakaraming abogado naman ang tumutulong sa akin upang ipaglaban at mapanalo ang mga kasong ito,” she said.