MANILA – Presidential Adviser on Poverty Alleviation Secretary Larry Gadon has filed a disbarment complaint before the Supreme Court (SC) against Vice President Sara Duterte following her statement that she has contracted an assassin to target President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and House of Representatives Speaker Martin Romualdez.

There was no immediate comment from VP Duterte who was reported to be in an official event in Mindanao. Duterte earlier denied hurling a murder plot against Marcos, the First Lady and Romualdez. “May nasabi ba akong assasin, murder plot?” she said before flying to Mindanao as she stressed that it is she and her family who are facing death threats.

In his letter filed before the high tribunal, Gadon urged the court to take action against the Vice President, the daughter of former president Rodrigo Duterte.

Gadon noted that Duterte’s live online press conference on Nov. 23 was on numerous social media platforms and has been seen by millions of Filipinos. reported on television, radio and newspapers and now has become general public knowledge that the court may take judicial notice.

“Such statements coming from the second highest official of the land, seen and heard by millions of Filipinos are undoubtedly illegal, immoral and condemnable. As a lawyer herself, she should be disbarred,” he said.

“While it may be alleged that the intent has not been consummated, nevertheless the statement revealed a fully constituted plan for murdering (the) three above individuals as she further affirmed that the assassination plot is not a joke,” he added.

This as the Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group (VPSPG) will be temporarily replaced with new military and police personnel, according to Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief General Romeo Brawner Jr.  

Brawner said they will be replaced in the meantime to ensure effective security for Vice President Sara Duterte, adding they will replace members who would have to face complaints filed against them.

Earlier in the day, the PNP said it has deployed 25 police personnel to the VPSPG in anticipation of the the possible recall of military personnel from the unit.

 In a related development, a total of 65 police officers from Police Regional Office XI in the Davao region have been reassigned to different regions in Luzon in a series of special orders from the Philippine National Police. The regional police spokesperson said the movements were unrelated to the rift between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte.

Many of the police officers were surprised by the latest directive from the PNP, which took effect on November 25, 2024, according to reports.

Meanwhile, the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) on Wednesday, November 27, filed a criminal complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte and three others following last weekend’s confrontation with police officers who secured the transfer of her chief of staff from a hospital.

Charges for direct assault, disobedience to authority and grave coercion, all punishable under the Revised Penal Code, were filed by main complainant Lt. Col. Jason Villamor, chief of the QCPD and Medical and Dental Unit and four other QCPD cops before the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.

Aside from Duterte, also named as respondents in the complaint were Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group (VPSPG) chief, Col. Raymond Dante Lachica and two John Does.

This follows a recent incident at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) involving the transfer of Duterte’s chief of staff, Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez.

Lopez was cited for contempt by the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability and was initially ordered to serve a five-day detention, which was subsequently extended to 10 days due to the disruption.

In a press conference held at Camp Crame, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo showed video footage where Duterte and Lachica were seen pushing Villamor, denying him of fulfilling the order of the House of Representatives to accompany Lopez during her transfer to the VMMC from the St. Luke’s Medical Center.

“In fact if I may share the video, which is already circulating, and this came from the head of security of the VP, they pushed our police officer. This is not an ordinary police officer, this is a doctor and he was precisely there to assist. He was assigned to the QCPD, he was specifically instructed to assist the patient and bring her to the Veterans Hospital. However, he was pushed by Col. Lachica and we cannot let this pass,” Fajardo said in Filipino.

Reports indicate that actions taken may have interfered with the lawful detention order issued by the House of Representatives, as well as disrupted operations at both the detention center and the VMMC.

Duterte also reportedly berated police officers securing Lopez’s transfer by telling them “‘wag kayong bakla (don’t be gay)”, which drew condemnation from the LGBTQ+ community and called it a derogatory remark.

“This obviously can qualify as a case of direct assault. In fact, puwede itong masabi na (this can be considered as) qualified direct assault because he is also a public officer. Malinaw sa ating mga batas na kung ikaw ay (Our laws clearly state that if you are a) public officer and you lay hands against agents of a person of authority whose presence there is by virtue of his performance of his official duty, you can be charged. He was directed to assist the patient and yet he received some cursing but he exercised self-restraint at hindi pumatol (and he did not retaliate), but you can see in the video na tinulak siya mismo (he was pushed),” said Fajardo.

In a statement after the filing of charges, PNP chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil said the police force remains steadfast in its commitment to uphold justice and ensure that all individuals are held accountable under the law, regardless of their position.