Opposition Sen. Risa Hontiveros used a popular catchphrase that has been trending on social media in a social media post about a children’s book released by Vice President Sara Duterte . The lawmaker and the vice president traded barbs on Tuesday over an illustrated children’s book with an allotted budget of P10 million.
Duterte attended the Senate budget deliberation on the 2025 proposed budget of the Office of the Vice President (OVP), which is P2.037 billion. Reports said things started amicably but heated up when Hontiveros said she would make a motion to lodge the OVP’s proposed program budgets into government agencies.
The lawmaker reasoned that the OVP’s programs appeared to be similar to existing programs of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Health, and the Department of Labor and Employment. These include medical and burial assistance, as well as livelihood support. Hontiveros then asked about the “Pagbabago Campaign” in which bags would be distributed to one million children.
It includes the book “ Isang Kaibigan ,” a book by Duterte. The senator asked what the book was about, to which Duterte commented that the former appeared to be “politicizing.” The vice president later said that the book was not for sale and that only the publication would be paid.
She also said she would send a copy of it to those present in the Senate budget deliberations. Hontiveros on Wednesday received the book and shared a video of it .