There is no such thing as a “conditional threat” especially if it is made by the second highest official of the land against the sitting President, a justice official said Wednesday.
DOJ: VP Sara Duterte may be charged with libel, defamation, grave threats
Justice Undersecretary Jesse Andres said Vice President Sara Duterte’s warning that she has asked someone to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, First Lady Liza Marcos and Speaker Martin Romualdez if she is assassinated first cannot be taken lightly.
“Napakaseryoso ng banta ni VP Sara…[There is] no such thing as a conditional threat. Unang-una po ‘yung revenge, ‘yung paghihiganti ay labag sa batas,” he said in an interview with Kabayan Noli de Castro.
He added that the threat should also be taken into context, considering that the Vice President would be the ultimate beneficiary if Marcos is killed.
“Ang pinagbabantaan nila ‘yung Pangulo ng Pilipinas...The second highest ranking official in the country who has so much power and political influence is the one making the utterances. She will be the beneficiary if the president dies. We cannot take this lightly. It is a very serious threat,” he said.
The National Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday served a subpoena for the Vice President to explain her alleged threat to assassinate President Marcos Jr., which she said "does not constitute an active threat."
Sara Duterte gets subpoena over kill plot vs Marcos; VP says threat a ‘plan without flesh’
Duterte, who is being investigated for grave threats, and possible violation of the anti-terrorism act, was requested to appear at the NBI headquarters on Friday to explain her weekend press conference where she said she had instructed that the First Couple and the Speaker of the House be killed should an alleged plot to kill her succeed.
One question that will be asked, Andres said, is who received the Vice President’s instructions to kill the Marcoses and Romualdez in the event that she is assassinated.
“Sino ‘yung inatasan niya na hired killer na magpapatupad nitong pagpatay sa ating Pangulo, First Lady at Speaker Martin Romualdez? We will get to the bottom of this. Kailan nangyari? What are the circumstances bakit niya inutos ‘yun?”
Duterte has said her statement was “taken out of its logical context” and that the "Marcos administration's insistence that the President's life is under active threat is ominous."
“Common sense should be enough for us to understand and accept that a supposed conditional act of revenge does not constitute to an active threat. This is plan without a flesh,” she said.