Vice Pres Sara Duterte rejects Malacañang’s 'failure' claim on education

Malacañang criticized Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio's tenure as education secretary as a 'complete failure' during a press briefing on Wednesday.

In response, Vice President Sara Duterte rejected Malacañang's statement during an interview in The Hague, Netherlands on Thursday, questioning the basis of the palace criticism and citing her genuine concern for teachers and youth when she resigned from DepEd last year.

Palace Press Officer Claire Castro had previously said Duterte-Carpio’s criticism of the country's education system reflects her shortcomings while leading DepEd from 2022 to 2024, citing outdated learning systems and idle educational materials.

Duterte also alleged that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had asked her to reconsider her resignation from the post in June 2024 and offered her another government position, which she declined.

Critics pointed out that during her tenure as DepEd chief, only 192 classrooms were built out of a target of 6,379 for 2023 and questioned the effectiveness of her flagship Matatag curriculum due to its chaotic implementation.

Vice President Duterte maintained that these attempts by Marcos showed he valued her service, contradicting Malacañang's characterization of her tenure as a failure.