Duterte on foreign trip: OFWs good consultants on foreign best practices
Metro Manila, Philippines - Criticisms on her frequent travels notwithstanding, Vice President Sara Duterte justified the trips: Filipinos abroad give good advice on best practices of other countries.
In an interview in The Hague, Netherlands on Aug. 28, Duterte said overseas Filipinos are the “best consultants” on best practices in solving flooding.
“Siguro dapat gawin nila yung ginagawa ko, di ba? Umiikot ako sa iba't ibang Filipino communities around the world. The overseas Filipinos and the overseas Filipino workers ang pinaka the best na mga consultants, kasi sila yung nakatira, nakaikot sa buong mundo, nakatrabaho sa iba't ibang lugar. Alam nila ang best practices,” she said as advice to the Marcos administration.
“So anong dapat ginagawa natin? Tinatanong natin sila. Ano ba yung nakita ninyo? Ano ba ‘yung pangarap natin para sa ating bayan? Ano ba yung doable doon sa ating bayan na best practices,” Duterte added.
[Translation: Maybe they should do what I’m doing, right? I go around different Filipino communities around the world…So what should we be doing? We ask them. What have you seen? What are our dreams for our country? What are the doable best practices in our country?]
The Palace and some lawmakers have slammed Duterte for her constant overseas trips.
As of Aug. 29, the vice president had 12 foreign trips this year – four of which are visits to her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, who is detained at an International Criminal Court facility to face murder charges for crimes against humanity, in relation to his bloody drug war.
LIST: VP Sara Duterte’s foreign trips in 2025
Duterte on corruption
Meanwhile, Duterte also commented on the hot-button topic of corruption, urging the president not to let lawmakers interfere with the budget.
This comes in the wake of investigations linking some representatives to corruption in the government’s flood control projects.
“Unang-una diyan, dapat kontrolado ng president yung budget. Dapat kung ano yung lumalabas sa budgeting system from the Regional Development Council, paakyat sa National Development Council, paakyat sa Cabinet level at kung ano yung napag-usapan based on development plans, yun ang nasusunod,” Duterte said.
“Pangalawa diyan, dapat hindi pumapayag ang pangulo na pakialaman ng legislators ang budget,” she added.
[Translation: First of all, the president should have control over the budget. Whatever comes out of the budgeting system from the Regional Development Council, up to the National Development Council, up to the Cabinet level and whatever is agreed upon based on development plans, that’s what should be followed…Secondly, the president should not allow legislators to interfere with the budget.]
Duterte earlier said she is expecting cuts in her office’s proposed P903-million funding for 2026 after intense scrutiny on her spending in last year’s budget debates. Her supposed mismanagement of at least P612.5 million confidential funds was among the bases of her now archived impeachment case.
In an interview in Bataan on Friday, Aug. 29, Ruth Castelo, Office of the Vice President (OVP) spokesperson, said the upcoming budget hearings are already “pencil-booked” in Duterte’s calendar.
Castelo said the House will discuss the OVP budget on Sept. 12, while the Senate inquiry is set on Sept. 15.
“She's ready anytime. Kaya naman po niya talagang harapin yan lahat. Ang magiging deperensya lang po natin nga ay yung sa schedule, yung pag-schedule ng engagements,” Castelo said.
[Translation: She's ready anytime. She’s definitely capable of facing all of that. The only difference would be the schedule - scheduling the engagements.]
