Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte posts bail over alleged death threat against Marcos

Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte posted bail at a Manila courthouse on Sept. 5, one day after a warrant was issued over an alleged death threat against President Ferdinand Marcos.

Prosecutors charged Duterte in August with grave threats after a late-night news briefing in which she said she had hired a hitman to kill Marcos, his wife and a congressman cousin if she were killed first. She later said her remarks had been misconstrued.

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The vice-president voluntarily appeared before the court that issued the warrant, so there was no need for her to be arrested.

The alleged threat has become a central part of Duterte’s Senate impeachment trial. A guilty verdict would remove her from office and permanently bar her from politics, ending a planned 2028 presidential campaign. The House of Representatives impeached her in May on charges that also included graft and corruption. The Senate trial had reached its ninth week.

Duterte voluntarily appeared before the court that issued the warrant, her lawyer Lawrence Lim said, so police did not need to arrest her. Before entering the courthouse, Duterte said she feared for her life and questioned whether she could safely be held in jail. “I don’t want to (post bail) if no one is watching,” she said, claiming that police were harassing her. A conviction on the grave threats charge carries a maximum sentence of six months in prison.

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I don’t want to (post bail) if no one is watching.