MANILA — Complaints filed against Vice President Sara Duterte over her 2024 remarks claiming she hired an assassin to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and others if she were harmed have been resolved and are now under review, according to Justice spokesperson Polo Martinez.

The complaints, which included charges of inciting to sedition and grave threats, were reportedly resolved in late 2025.

“Under review, meaning may resolution na. It’s pending review with the division head,” Martinez told reporters.

“Inaalam pa kung tama ‘yung naging resolution doon na dismissal or filing. We don’t know yet,” he added.
(They are still determining whether the resolution of dismissal or filing was correct. We don’t know yet.)

Once the review is complete, the DOJ panel of prosecutors may either dismiss the case or recommend charges against the vice president in Philippine courts.

The complaints followed Duterte’s online press briefing in 2024, where she said she ordered someone to kill Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and former Speaker Martin Romualdez if an alleged plot against her succeeded.

The National Bureau of Investigation subsequently recommended filing a complaint against her in February 2025. Duterte later clarified that her “assassination” remarks were not a threat, explaining that she was merely pointing out an alleged threat to her security and that her statements were “maliciously taken out of logical context.”

Martinez also noted that Duterte’s declaration of her 2028 presidential bid will not affect the review.

“No. Whether or not VP Sara had announced her intentions to run for the presidency will not affect the assessment of the prosecutors in the pending case against her. That applies to any other individual,” he said.