VP Sara Duterte’s Bloodbath Remark: A Timeline of Tension

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🕓 Last Updated: June 4, 2025, 1:14 am (PH time)

What might VP Sara Duterte’s bloodbath remark have intended?

With the House of Representatives (HOR) voting in February 2025 to impeach Sara Duterte, the first Philippine vice president to face the impeachment process, attention quickly turned to how VP Sara Duterte would address the looming impeachment trial in the Senate.

In mid-May, after reports that former Sen. Leila de Lima (incoming party-list congresswoman) would serve on the prosecution team, VP Sarah Duterte held an interview in her hometown of Davao City. She stated bluntly, during her interview, “But I told them that I truly want a trial because I want a bloodbath.”

This vivid language immediately drew scrutiny. With alacrity, critics warned that the word “bloodbath” carries violent overtones and called it “toxic rhetoric,” while allies and Palace officials suggested it was likely a figure of speech.

Many have asked this ₱125 million-worth question (no pun intended): What exactly did VP Sara Duterte mean by such a dramatic turn of phrase?

At one level, “bloodbath” can be interpreted as a metaphor for a highly contentious hearing. VP Sara Duterte’s track record of an adversarial political approach, combined with the adversarial tradition of her family brand, can be read as implying she had been flashing signals of readiness to battle aggressively instead of compromising.

By invoking warfare imagery, VP Sara Duterte, perhaps, aimed to rally her supporters and underscore that she would not go quietly. At the same time, she might be pairing that “bloodbath” remark with a comment that she has “no expectations of acquittal or guilty verdict” and is “already at peace” or she has already come to terms with an outcome when the Senate decides.

Consequently, VP Sara Duterte might have painted a picture of a high-stakes showdown (a “bloodbath”) even as she portrayed herself as calm and resigned to the outcome. This duality, perhaps, draws a deliberate rhetorical strategy: it conveys defiance and drama on one hand, while downplaying fear of consequences on the other hand.

Political observers might have drawn contrasting interpretations. Supporters or allies might consider understanding “bloodbath” as hyperbole meant to emphasize thoroughness; as prosecution member and Iloilo 3rd District Rep. Lorenz Defensor put it, the trial will be “winner takes all,” not literal carnage.

On this side of the veil, VP Sara Duterte could be saying she expects all facts to come out dramatically, perhaps likening the process to a decisive victory or purge of wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, VP Sara Duterte’s critics, however, heard threats. Incoming Rep. de Lima noted calmly, or rather, fiercely, that in a constitutional impeachment, only one person is truly “on trial,” so any “blood” would belong to the defendant—a point underscoring that the courts are not meant to be battlefields.

On point, Malacañang Press Secretary Claire Castro echoed this concern. She described VP Sara Duterte’s “bloodbath” remark as “somewhat violent,” urging that it may not be taken literally and that proceedings should simply unfold normally.

The political implications of VP Sara Duterte’s rhetoric are either mixed or cold, literally bland. On one side, her combative comment may agitate her base: it projects confidence and frames the trial as a dramatic contest against opponents.

In a polarized environment, with the Dutertes and the Marcoses no longer allied, tough talk can solidify support among sympathizers who could see the charges as political attacks. On the flip side, the language threatens to alienate independents or moderates who desire respectful discussion in an impeachment trial. President Marcos Jr.’s allies may fear that such labels confuse legal responsibility with political stage-style dramaturgy.

In fact, some political observers caution that calling a trial a “bloodbath” could overshadow the seriousness of a judicial procedure. As incoming Rep. De Lima impliedly noted, an impeachment trial is supposed to be a sober matter of law and facts, not a show of brute force.

Strategically, however, VP Sara Duterte’s sharp choice of words may also reflect broader messaging aims. By publicly flaunting readiness for a fight, she potentially forces the issue of how the impeachment trial will be conducted. It could be a bid to shape expectations, signaling she will give her critics no quarter and that the impeachment proceedings will be intense.

Concurrently, coupling the hyperbole with promises of peace in defeat implies delicate calibration: VP Sara Duterte appears belligerent to observers but secretly defends her reasonable image. This shifting between belligerency and grace is a hallmark of belligerent political rhetoric—hazardous.

As a final thought, the “bloodbath” remark is best seen as a calculated bit of high‑color rhetoric in the heat of a bitter political contest. It falls short of a literal promise of violence, as VP Sara Duterte’s team and some allies insist, but it is a deliberately stark choice of words.

Whether the phrase is interpreted as mere bravado or a breach of decorum, it has already set the tone for the narrative of the impeachment. What is clear is that both sides are attuned to such cues. As impeachment proceedings move forward, VP Sara Duterte’s aggressive phrasing will have to be watched not just for its literal meaning but for what it reveals about her impeachment trial strategy and how it might influence public perceptions.

Timeline of VP Sara Duterte’s Key Impeachment Statements

  • February 7, 2025: In a press conference two days after the HOR impeached her, Duterte downplayed the process. She joked that “losing a partner is more painful than being impeached” (cebudailynews.inquirer.net) and reiterated she would not resign, telling reporters, “We’re not there yet; those things are still too far off” (reuters.com). She concluded the briefing with the remark, “God save the Philippines,” defending her innocence and resilience (reuters.com).
  • February 19, 2025: Duterte’s camp resorted to the law. She asked the Supreme Court to enjoin the impeachment, accusing leaders of the HOR of committing a “grave abuse of discretion” by pursuing a fresh charge against her (reuters.com). In that petition, she alleged the impeachment action was politically motivated and constitutionally suspect.
  • May 18, 2025: Two weeks since midterm elections (where most of her allies won Senate seats), Duterte gave an interview in Davao City before the July trial. She informed journalists that her team was gearing up “full throttle” and stated she was looking forward to the Senate hearing “because I want a bloodbath” (newsinfo.inquirer.net). Meanwhile, she declared that she has “no expectations of acquittal or guilty verdict” and is already “at peace” with the eventual verdict (bangkokpost.com; newsinfo.inquirer.net). She also said it was too soon to forecast how senators would decide, as they had not yet heard the evidence (newsinfo.inquirer.net).

💬 AI Use Disclosure: This is an AI technology-assisted article (ChatGPT, OpenAI). 👉 Learn more about our AI use.

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