Samotsari - Confidential Funds

Atty. Roderick Wamil, a COA auditor, has some revealing information on the 11th and 12th day of the impeachment trial.

It was so graphic it leaves little to the imagination. Kung hindi ka talaga sanay sa eskandalo ... mahihiya ka lalo na at milyon o bilyon ang perang nawawala.

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Unang tanong pa lang ni Atty. Lorna Kapunan sa auditor kung ano ang kanyang observation sa pag-audit ng confidential funds ng 3 magkasunod na vice presidents ... mga pasabog na agad ang  pinakawalan ng auditor.

Si Vice President Jejomar Binay at si VP Leni Robredo ay walang mga confidential funds.  Tanging si Sara Duterte lang ang mayroon.

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Sinundan ito ng pangalawang tanong. Sa Department of Education, ano naman ang mga obserbasyon mo sa 3 Department of Education secretaries na pinagsilbihan mo?

Wala po akong ina-audit kay Sec.Armin Luistro at Leonor Briones. Sara Duterte is the first Vice President na may confidential funds sa Dep Ed.

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Pagpasok pa lang niya sa fourth quarter ng 2022, naghingi na raw si Sara ng 125 milyon sa confidential funds.

Hindi pa tapos ang taon, said na ang pondo. Christmas noon, kaya allegedly on a shopping spree daw ang VP at kanyang dabarkads. Tsika lang.

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Sabi nga ng isang reader: "Nagpasalamat talaga ako at nagkaroon ng tensiyon ang Green at ang Pula."

Aba, kung wala silang alitan ... hindi kayang mapahindian ni BBM ang mga spoiled na confidential funds demands ng Prinsesa ng Dabaw. Di ba balita noon ang ma-pritsong lambing ni Sara na gagamitin niya ang presidential helicopter to allow her to get "home in time to tuck her children to bed"?

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Sabi ni Atty. Roderick Wamil, ang paggamit daw ng confidential funds ni VP ay ilegal at improper.

Sa tindi ng statement na ’yan… hindi na oobra ang mga bulok na katwiran at dahilan ni Cayetano: "Just because it is unusual… it is illegal" (his line of reasoning sa mga bank exec ng Land Bank of last week's trial.)

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Senator Imee Marcos and COA official Roderick Wamil didn't have a hearing—they starred in a telenovela where the script was written in invisible ink. 

Marcos played the frantic defense attorney trying to save the day, while Wamil played the human speed bump who kept answering her dramatic soap-opera gasps with dry, lethal receipts.

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The shutdown breakdown is obvious. The Plot: Senator Imee is trying her absolute hardest to spin secret funds into a misunderstood act of charity.

The Climax: Wamil in return, is treating the senator’s leading questions like annoying pop-up ads on YouTube.

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The punchlines also are begging for attention. When Imee enters the scene, her script niya ay nag-tumbling. It wasn’t an investigation into missing millions; it was a desperate audition for Vice President Sara Duterte’s 2028 campaign.

It is just too bad, every time Marcos tried to hand Wamil a clean narrative on a silver platter, he handed it right back with a prima facie smackdown.

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Si Imee Marcos naman, gustong ilaglag si Fajarda at Acosta, maisalba lang ang prinsesa ng Davao. Kapag naiipit na ... laglagan na ba? Mabuti na lang hindi kinagat ni Wamil.  

Palusot ni Imee: "Ikaw kasi, palagi mo akong inaaway." Guniguni mo lang yon, Madam. Walang umaaway sa iyo.

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Imee: Ang liwa-liwanag na hindi si VP ang payee.  The special disbursing officer is the one designated by the head of the agency to have custody. In the case of OVP, si Gina Acosta yon. In the case of DepEd di ba si Edward Fajarda yon?

Wamil: That is not entirely correct, Your Honor. Because in the joint circular, it is the responsibility of the head of the agency to approve and oversee yung cash advance.

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Imee: Ang liwanag naman na hindi si Sara Duterte ang payee. Hindi naman sinabi na sa kanya ang pera. Di ba nasa SDO?

The Vice President has the primary responsibility. Nasa Sec 102 of PD 1445 ang kasagtan. (It says: It establishes primary and secondary responsibility. It states that the head of a government agency is immediately and primarily responsible for all agency funds and property, while custodians or caretakers are immediately responsible to the agency head)

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Senator-Judge Imee Marcos argued that Special Disbursing Officers Gina Acosta and Edward Fajarda are the primary accountable officers under audit rules. 

Wamil and subsequent COA clarifications disagreed, stating that the head of the agency is also accountable for approving the cash advances, ensuring agency-wide utilization, making accountability shared rather than restricted solely to the SDOs.  VP Sara, as agency head, shares liability.

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Pinagtanggol ni Alan Peter "Neutral" Cayetano na hindi pa raw pinal ang prima facie evidence ng COA, pero sa ginawa niyang iyon, parang inamin din nilang may bigat na ng paglabag sa batas.

Listening to him, it sounds like a contradictory defense. Dismissing preliminary findings as "not final" implicitly acknowledges that an actionable legal presumption of wrongdoing already exists.

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Pagkatapos, idiniin naman ni Imee na ang mga tauhan ang may sala at hindi si Sara—isang tahasang pag-amin na talagang may maling paggamit ng pondo. 

Sa halip na ipagtanggol, mas lalo lang nilang ibinaon sa hukay ang kaso ni Sara sa pamamagitan ng sarili nilang mga palusot.

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What Imee did was a "hao shao" lawyering for dear friend Sara Duterte. Sisihin ba naman si Acosta at Fajarda?

Blaming the staff instead of the principal, legally and logically, confirms that fund misuse actually occurred within the office.

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Ang ginawa nina Alan Peter at Imee is not well thought out… hindi pinag-isipan… basta lang makakuha ng airtime, thinking they will surely get pogi points. Yon ang akala nila.

The arguments they shared (are self-incriminating logic) meant to clear or help Sara Duterte ... instead, it ended up reinforcing the evidence of liability. 

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Ooooops Robin Did It Again

In the grand, high-ceilinged chamber of the Philippine Senate, there are two distinct schools of legislative strategy:

THE SENATORIAL STRATEGY SPECTRUM
A
[ THE SILENT MONK METHOD ] -Mark Villar, Camille Villar, • Bong Go, Lito Lapid

-Speech: 0-5 words per session

-Outcome: Zero clips on social media
B
[ THE BOOMERANG WARRIOR ] -Robin Padilla

-Speech: 100% Volume

-Outcome: Self-inflicted legal damage in high definition

For years, senior political strategists have reportedly whispered the same ancient advice into Senator Robin Padilla’s ear:

"Senator, look at Mark Villar. Look at Camille. Look at Lito Lapid. Have you ever seen them get roasted in an online legal breakdown? No. Why? Because you cannot be cross-examined on a sentence you never uttered."

While the silent contingent has perfected the art of blending seamlessly into the mahogany furniture, Senator Padilla refuses to take the quiet path. He insists on stepping into the arena, swinging the conversational sword, and accidentally stabbing his own legal arguments in the process.

When Senator Padilla grabs the microphone to defend an ally or grill an expert witness, a predictable legislative phenomenon occurs:

[ THE PADILLA QUESTIONING CYCLE ]

1. SENATOR OPENS MIC ──► "May I ask a simple, patriotic question?"

2. THE SET-UP ──► Attempts complex legal or geopolitical trap (e.g., Force Majeure, BARMM geography, Credentials and Intelligence of witness)

3. THE RELEASE ──► Launches grand thesis at full volume

4. THE BOOMERANG ──► Witness answers with a single basic fact...

5. SELF-STRIKE ──► Senator's own question proves the prosecution's point

Whether he is attempting to redefine "force majeure" to include bad weather during voting sessions, or grilling financial auditors on whether they personally fought in conflict zones to verify confidential funds, the end result is always identical: the premise collapses on impact.

While legal scholars analyze testimony using rules of evidence; Senator Padilla analyzes testimony using the Drunk Tito at a Family Reunion set-up.

-The Tactical Strategy: Ask the witness if they have ever lived in Mindanao. If the answer is no, declare their financial audit invalid. If the answer is yes, ask them if they have personally seen a confidential fund in the wild.

-The Net Result: The witness calmly explains standard accounting circulars, leaving the Senator standing at the podium, surrounded by the smoking ruins of his own line of questioning.

There is a profound lesson in physics that the Senate floor proves daily: if you throw a heavy object into the wind without knowing where it’s going, it usually comes right back to hit you in the forehead.

Until Senator Padilla adopts even a tiny fraction of the Villar family's Zen-like stoicism, the public will continue to enjoy the show—watching the Number 1 Senator wage a heroic, one-man war against his own microphone; it's a one-boomerang story to tell.

And then yesterday, because Senator Padilla can't stop his urge to use the microphone again for the nth time despite all the warnings and friendly advice ... he still continued to stand with his causes of the day.

During the interpellations, the Senate’s top vote-getter bravely connected the Department of Education (DepEd)—the agency tasked with teaching 5-year-olds the alphabet and finger-painting—to radical communist recruitment in state universities.

While legal scholars, educators, and elementary school teachers collectively held their breath, the Senator fearlessly proved once again why the "Villar-Go-Lapid Silence Strategy" remains the most underappreciated life hack in Philippine politics.

To fully appreciate the Senator's legal and administrative analysis, one must understand the subtle distinction that somehow escaped his radar:
A
-Agency / Topic - DepEd
-Actual Statutory Scope - Kindergarten, Elementary, High School, Senior High
-The Robin Padilla Interpretation - Underground university recruitment hubs & insurgency cells
B
-Agency/Topic - CHED
-Actual Statutory Scope -Higher Education, Colleges, State Universities
-The Robin Padilla Interpretation - Completely irrelevant; optional background noise
C
-Agency / Topic - Target Audience
-Actual Statutory Scope - 5 to 17-year-olds learning fractions & parts of speech
-The Robin Padilla Interpretation - Hardened student activists writing Marxist manifestos
D
-Agency / Topic - Primary Weapon
-Actual Statutory Scope - Crayons, Play-Doh, and Building Blocks -The Robin Padilla Interpretation - Subversive ideology in university lecture halls

[ THE PADILLA EPISODE ARCHITECTURE ]

1. THE INSPIRATION ──► "I must defend the VP and expose the underground network!"
2. THE ACCUSATION ──► "Universities are recruiting for the NPA through DepEd!"
3. THE REALITY CHECK ──► Auditor/Lawyer: "Sir, DepEd handles Grade 1. CHED handles college."
4. THE SELF-STRIKE ──► Senator inadvertently implies kindergartners are reading Das Kapital │ while accusing his own allies' department of harboring insurgents.
5. THE CONCLUSION ──► "I yield my time to prepare a 20-minute Facebook Live explanation."

As is tradition whenever Robin's senatorial argument boomerangs back into the podium, the public can expect a 45-minute live stream directly from the Senator's office. It will feature:

A dramatic opening monologue about patriotism, honor, and action-movie loyalty.

An impassioned explanation of how 6-year-olds in DepEd kindergarten classrooms are actually the secret vanguard of higher-education subversives.

A firm refusal to admit that CHED and DepEd are two completely different government agencies.

Until the next hearing, the nation remains on high alert—not for university insurgents, but for the next time the number one senator opens his microphone.

Yes Or No Lang!

The Senate Impeachment Court has officially unveiled its newest, high-stakes reality TV segment: "The Yes-or-No Deathtrap," starring Senator-Judges Robin Padilla and Imee Marcos as the ultimate cross-examination tag team.

If you are summoned to the witness stand, you are not merely testifying under oath—you have entered an intellectual gladiatorial arena where the rules of formal logic have been replaced by the mechanics of a boxing ring.

[ THE "BITAG" WITNESS EXPERIENCE ] 

A

 -WITNESS ENTERING THE STAND - Nervous, holding notes

 -PADILLA & IMEE'S QUESTIONING - "Answer YES or NO only!"

 -FINAL STATUS - Credibility shredded 

B

 -WITNESS ENTERING THE STAND - Hopes to state truth   

-PADILLA & IMEE'S QUESTIONING -"Where is your PhD?" 

 -FINAL STATUS - Trapped in custom box 

C

 -WITNESS ENTERING THE STAND - Thirsty

 -PADILLA & IMEE'S QUESTIONING - "Are you a liar? YES/NO" 

 -FINAL STATUS -Self-dug grave completed 

Step 1: The "Credentials Interrogation" Blitz

Before a witness can even finish stating their name, Senator Padilla typically moves to dismantle their entire life story.

• Witness: "Good afternoon, your Honors. I am an auditor with 15 years of experience—"

• Senator Padilla: "Aha! But do you have a degree in quantum astrophysics? No? So how can you sit there and claim you understand line-item budgeting? Furthermore, do you have any pending barangay clearance disputes from 2012? Answer the question!"

If you tremble, stutter, or reach for a glass of water, you have immediately failed the "Action Hero" credibility test. You are instantly cataloged not as an expert witness, but as a confused bystander who accidentally wandered into the Senate hall.

Step 2: The Binary Box (The "Yes or No" Paradox)

As raised by eagle-eyed commentators and bloggers, the core weapon in this senatorial arsenal is the Mandatory Binary Response. The objective is simple: reduce complex financial trails, constitutional law, and years of investigation into a single forced syllable.

THE ULTIMATE YES-OR-NO TRAP MENU 

-QUESTION ASKED BY SENATOR:  "Did you or did you not breathe air on the day the confidential funds were spent?" 

 -WITNESS'S INTENDED RESPONSE: "Yes, but if I may explain the accounting procedure regarding the disbursement..." 

-SENATOR'S INTERRUPTION: │ │ "NO EXPLANATIONS! JUST SAY YES OR NO! ARE YOU REFUSING TO ANSWER THE COURT?!"

  By removing nuance, context, and basic grammar, the search for truth becomes a game of legal Minesweeper where every step leads to an explosion.

Step 3: Placing the Last Nail in the Coffin

How does one extract the truth when the witness stand operates like an obstacle course designed to rattle your soul?

Traditional Courtroom	The Padilla & Imee Special
Goal: Establish facts via thorough testimony.	Goal: Lock the witness in a box and throw away the key.
Method: Direct and cross-examination.	Method: Interruption, credential audits, and theatrical flares.
Witness Role: Provide evidence and context.	Witness Role: Dig their own grave in under 3 minutes.

When the divine line to wisdom is already silent, and the cross-examination is engineered for maximum drama, the best defense for any nervous witness might just be bringing a shovel—because under these rules of engagement, the coffin nails come pre-packaged and ready to hammer.

Blame the Staff, Save the Boss

In what can only be described as a breathtaking leap forward in administrative law, Senator-Judge Imee Marcos has unveiled a groundbreaking legal theory during the Senate Impeachment Court.

For centuries, legal scholars have relied on the ancient doctrine of respondeat superior—the principle that the head of an agency is ultimately responsible for the actions of those under their supervision and what happens on their watch. But why stick to centuries of legal precedent when you can simply invent "Respondeat Inferior"?

Under this innovative new framework, when billions of pesos in confidential funds vanish into thin air, the Vice President and former Education Secretary is completely blameless.

The real mastermind villains? Her designated Special Disbursing Officers (SDOs), Gina Acosta and Edward Fajarda.

The Two Doctrines Of Accountability

-Traditional Law - Respondeat Superior - The agency head takes full responsibility for everything that happens underneath them.

-The Imee Marcs Edition - Respondeat Inferior - The agency takes all the credit ... while the staff takes 100 % of the blame.

During the impeachment cross-examination, Senator Imee took former Commission on Audit (COA) auditor Roderick Wamil to task over who should actually be wearing the handcuffs if the audit numbers don't add up. Listen to their Senate Floor Dialogue

-Sen. Imee Marcos - "Why are you picking on the Vice President? Did her name physically appear on the cash advance? No, Gina Acosta and Edward Fajarda hold the cash. They signed the paper. She was the boss who ordered it, approved it, authorized it, and spent it.

-Auditor Roderick Wamil: With all due respect, Your Honor, under COA rules and statutory Law, the head of the agency bears command responsibility for approving cash advances and ensuring joint circular compliance.

If Senator Imee’s logic holds, we must immediately rewrite how every government office, corporation, and household in the Philippines operates:

The New Top-Down Responsibility Chart
A.
-The Agency Head - Vice President
-Responsibility Level - 0%
-Duties: Approving funds, issuing statements, jet-setting
B
-Special Disbursing Officer
-Responsibility Level - 100 %
- Duties: carrying the cash, taking the fall, appearing on subpoenas

By this logic:

In a Restaurant: If the food gives 500 customers food poisoning, do not sue the owner or the head chef. Sue the dishwasher who handed out the plates!

In an Airline: If a plane lands in a ditch, the CEO and the pilot are completely innocent. The flight attendant who served the peanuts is the primary accountable officer.

In the Department of Education: If billions in budget allocations go missing, the Secretary was simply busy reading children's books. Blame the person holding the petty cash envelope!

Why have "too many tricks up her dirty sleeves" when a single, reliable trick works so well?

By insisting that only Acosta and Fajarda are the "primary accountable officers," the defense creates a convenient human shield.

If the prosecution wants answers about where the money went, they are told to go hunt down the SDOs—who, by total coincidence, are rarely available for comment, perpetually out of the country, or shielded by a mountain of technical objections.

Meanwhile, the Vice President can sit back, maintain her complete immunity from administrative oversight, and point at the organizational chart while whispering: "I just signed the papers, guys. Talk to the cashiers!"

While the prosecution and COA auditors continue to insist that statutory law makes the head of an agency ultimately accountable, Senator Imee Marcos has provided a masterclass in political sisterhood.

Why let a little thing like administrative law get in the way of protecting a political ally? After all, in the grand theater of Philippine impeachment trials, the buck doesn't stop at the top—it gets passed all the way down to the person holding the receipt book.

The Heavenly Hotline: When Senator Robin Padilla Prayed for Wisdom He’d Already Rejected

 

In what can only be described as a masterpiece of primetime political theater, Senator-Judge Robin Padilla opened a session of the Vice President's impeachment trial by leading the official prayer.

Kneeling figuratively at the altar of divine intervention, the senator solemnly asked Almighty God for "wisdom in this hour" and petitioned the heavens for the strength to uphold "the heavy burden of rendering justice."

It was a deeply moving spiritual moment—marred only by the minor technicality that Senator Padilla had already publicly declared his judgment long before the trial even started.

THE SENATORIAL PRAYER VS. REALITY MATRIX

[ THE PRAYER REQUEST ] Lord, grant us wisdom to deliver impartial justice today."

[ THE PRE-EXISTING VERDICT ] "Kahit sunugin mo ako dito, mangangamoy Duterte pa rin ako."

For observers watching from home, watching Senator Padilla ask God for wisdom was like watching a driver ask GPS for directions after intentionally cutting the steering wheel cable and locking the destination to a single location.

[ HEAVENLY TELECOM NETWORK ]

CALL STATUS: FAILED

DIALED FROM: Senate Impeachment Session Hall

REASON FOR ERROR: "The God you are trying to reach is currently out of coverage area due to extreme bias. Please try again after recusing yourself."

The theological paradox at play here is staggering:

The Request: Asking the Divine Spirit to guide his heart toward objective truth and justice.

The Reality: Having already boasted on record, "Even if you burn me here, I will smell like Rodrigo Roa Duterte".

The Result: A prayer that essentially translates to, "Lord, please give me the wisdom to acquit, regardless of whatever evidence the prosecution presents."

If prayer is meant to be a moment of humble submission and openness to higher guidance, treating the Senate podium like a movie set where one recites lines about "justice" while wearing armor made of pure political loyalty pushes the boundaries of performance art.

[ OPTIONS FOR SENATORIAL ETIQUETTE ]

OPTION A: Pray for open-mindedness ──► Examine the evidence ──► Render verdict.

OPTION B: Declare unyielding loyalty ──► Lead the prayer anyway ──► Ignore evidence.

In any standard judicial proceeding, a judge who publicly proclaims absolute bias toward the accused is expected to execute the most sensible legal maneuver available: inhibition and recusal.

In the Philippine Senate Impeachment Court, however, it qualifies you to lead the opening spiritual invocation.

When a courtroom's solemn tradition of prayer becomes a theatrical prologue to a predetermined outcome, the public isn't left feeling inspired—they're left looking for the remote control.

Until "seeking wisdom" involves actually listening to testimony instead of guarding an ideological trench, the nation's spiritual line to the Senate floor will likely remain on hold.

Tale of Two Records: Book of Fame or Book of Shame

 
?

While back home in Manila, political grandstanders, trial lawyers, and YouTube legal analysts were busy screaming over bank subpoenas, unliquidated receipts, and procedural technicalities in the Senate Impeachment Court, 21-year-old Alex Eala was doing something completely unheard of in contemporary Philippine public life:

She went out, worked hard, earned her own paycheck, and won a historic WTA Tour title in Washington, D.C.—all without invoking executive privilege, filing a motion to postpone, or blaming a predecessor.

[ THE PHILIPPINE REALITY MATRIX ]

SENATE IMPEACHMENT COURT

-Drama Level: 10/10

-Evidence: Doctored TikTok Reels

-Weather: Toxic Political Storm

-Output: Endless Delays

-Destination: Book of Shame

(MUBADALA DC OPEN (WASHINGTON, D.C.)

-Drama Level: Pure Athletic Grit

-Evidence: 6-0 Final-Set Bagel

-Weather: Literal Thunderstorm Delays

-Output: First WTA Singles Title

-Destination: Book of Fame │

Even the elements tried to intervene. Rainstorms in D.C. suspended play for hours, pushing the final into a rare Monday match.

In the Philippines, a rain delay during a high-stakes event would be immediately treated as a grand political conspiracy:

The Defense Team: "Objection! The rain is clearly a weaponized atmospheric maneuver by the prosecution to disrupt our client’s momentum!"

The Senate Floor: "We need a three-hour legislative inquiry to determine if the cloudburst is pro-China or pro-BBM."

Eala, however, didn't file a petition for a temporary restraining order against Mother Nature. She simply walked back out onto the court after the rain cleared and handed World No. 3 Jessica Pegula a flawless 6-0 third-set sweep to claim the Mubadala DC Open title.

In a political landscape where public figures fight tooth and nail over millions of unexplained pesos, Eala provided a refreshing, highly radical blueprint for financial success:

[ THE EALA BLUEPRINT FOR LEGITIMATE INCOME ]

1. Wake up at 5:00 AM.

2. Hit thousands of forehands and backhands.

3. Outplay the best tennis players in the world.

4. Collect prize money with zero AMLC red flags attached.

There were no hidden bank accounts. No shell companies. No unitemized liquidations submitted on paper towels. Just raw, honest, sweat-stained execution.

While the country’s legal pundits were busy dissecting whether a changing witness testimony means someone is a "sinungaling," Eala was proving a far simpler truth on center court: When you hit a baseline winner, it doesn't matter what your politics are—the ball is just in.

So while the politicos back home continue to drag the nation through the mud of the impeachment court, Filipinos can take a collective deep breath, look across the globe to Washington, D.C., and celebrate a victory that didn't require a single subpoena to prove.

Samot Sari Pax Silica

Nag-damage control pa ang mga kampon ni Duterte sa The Hague when VP Sara had an ambush interview at tinanong siya kung ano ang kanyang opinyon sa Pax Silica.

Gusto pa nilang lusutan ang mga katangahan ni Inday, at sarcasm at joke lang daw iyon. Ang mga tao pa ang sinisisi nila na mabilis silang humusga at hindi nila naintindihan ang "I Can't  Comment On That" reply ni Inday.

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Takot talaga si Inday na mabansagang tanga or boba ng sambayanang Filipino lalo na at malapit ang 2028.

Hindi nga naman tama at isa itong insulto na nanligaw siya ng suporta sa mga botante for the highest office of the land ... tapos hindi niya alam ang isang malaking issue that is being debated by ordinary mortals (sa mga barberya at sa mga inuman) ... mula Aparri hanggang Jolo?

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Isa rin itong sampal sa kanya dahil wala siyang bukambibig kundi katayin si BBM ... kesyo hindi ito marunong magpalakad ng bansa ... kesyo bangag raw ... kesyo at marami pang kesyo. 

At sino naman kaya ang magaling at hindi bangag aber? You know who she is referring to. Thanks ... but no thanks!

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We have seen Inday and her reactions before with some viral moments of unfamiliarity and blank stares galore that were already considered classic in the memory banks of non-Sara voters.

Her obvious confusion over confidential fund receipt names or her vague responses regarding national security and political alliances top the list.

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Vice President Sara Duterte appeared visibly baffled and at a loss for words when asked about the Pax Silica initiative, initially mishearing the term as "Fox Silic". 

One reader volunteered to describe her obvious initial confusion. She said Sara mispronounced the word ... (translation: ngayon lang niya ito narinig), tapos mag-gas-lighting sa mga tao na nagjo-joke lang or sarcastic?

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Another reader saw panic in her blank stares (translation: yari na naman ako sa tanong na ito).

I saw her mumbling ... and when she blinked, she muttered: "Ano? Fox Sili ... Fox Silic ... showing she did not recognize the term.

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She struggled to process the words, sounding completely caught off guard by the U.S.-backed technology and semiconductor initiative. 

Sa isip niya siguro ... "Ang hirap mag-ambition maging presidente... kailangan alam mo ang lahat."

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Mabuti na lang marunong siya ng deflection at palusot. Her final pivot? After being corrected by those around her on the actual name, she offered "Wala" (nothing)

Her final shield: She ultimately used a safe exit line, stating, "I cannot comment on that," avoiding any substantive discussion. Kung bakit ayaw niyang mag-comment? Ma at pa (Malay natin ... at pakialam natin?)

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Tapos sa The Hague today, she revived online discussion over her earlier refusal to comment on the proposed artificial intelligence (AI) industrial hub in Tarlac.

Aba, kahapon lang lutang, tapos ngayon matapang?  Nakapag-Google na siguro, as advised by her bosom friend Senator Robin Padilla.

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While thanking organizers of the July 29 gathering in support of former President Rodrigo Duterte, the Vice President singled out an organizer named Alvin and joked about him losing sleep over "Pax Silica."

She then added: "Alvin, if they cannot respect a 'no comment,' you should not lose sleep over it. That is their problem. That is not your problem."

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Moral of the story? Tama na kasi ang pagkukunyari ... kung hindi alam ... e di hindi alam. Alangan namang pilitin nating sumagot ang taong walang alam?

Hindi bobo ang mga tao. Even without taking Psychology 101, they know when somebody is gaslighting ... and they know when they are being manipulated into believing nagjo-joke lang si VP at nasa sarcasm mode at mood.

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