VICE President Sara Duterte said that the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) should act professionally following what she described as their “insensitive” approach in announcing class suspensions in some parts of the country due to heavy rains.
“They have to be professional. Hindi ko sinasabing hindi – hindi pwede maging professional ang ano ha pero the person can express, has the freedom of expression. An institution does not have the freedom of expression,” she said during a media interview on July 22, 2025, at The Hague in the Netherlands.
(They have to be professional. I'm not saying that – that someone can't be professional, okay? But a person can express themselves, has the freedom of expression. An institution does not have the freedom of expression.)
Duterte explained that, like her, the DILG should differentiate between personal and official communication channels. She pointed out that she has a personal account separate from that of the Office of the Vice President (OVP). She added that the OVP also has a designated spokesperson to convey the institution’s work, projects, and services professionally.
Earlier, netizens raised concerns over what they saw as the DILG’s “unserious” posts, which featured a meme-like tone in announcing class and work suspensions. These posts were made as several areas in Luzon, particularly Metro Manila, experienced heavy rains and flooding.
“Mga Abangers, Lousy kami sa gobyerno kahapon. Dapat kagabi pa lang, inunahan na namin ang delubyo (Abangers, we were lousy in the government yesterday. We should have gotten ahead of the disaster last night),” DILG’s post read.
Celebrities Jake Ejercito and Jessy Mendiola also voiced concern over the department’s tone in making such announcements.
“There’s a time and place for trying to be funny – this isn’t one of them,” Ejercito said.
“Is this supposed to be funny?” Mendiola asked.
Meanwhile, in a radio interview on dzMM on July 23, 2025, DILG Secretary Jonvic Remulla explained that this has always been his style of posting, even during his time as governor of Cavite. He expressed hope that the public would understand his approach and emphasized that he did not intend to offend anyone.
Remulla said that if he had hurt sensibilities, he would apologize. However, he added that he would not change who he is and would continue doing his best, particularly when it comes to disseminating important information. RGP