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The
government and the communist rebels agreed last week to restart
talks after a six-year hiatus, aiming to end half a century of
conflict that has killed more than 40,000 people.
Duterte, the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte who
terminated the talks in 2017, warned the rebels could take
advantage of peace negotiations and were "insincere" in
achieving a settlement.
She has urged the president to reconsider and review the policy
which includes granting amnesty to members of the Communist
Party of the Philippines, its political arm, the National
Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and its armed wing,
the New People's Army (NPA).
"Mr. President, the government’s statement with the NDFP in Oslo
was an agreement with the devil," Duterte said in an address
streamed on her Facebook page.
"They will use this peace negotiations to betray government and
deceive the public."
Duterte, who is also education secretary, was named vice-chair
of an anti-communist task force created by the elder Duterte
which Marcos now heads.
As vice president, she has limited policymaking powers under the
Philippine constitution except to succeed the president if he
dies or becomes too sick to govern.
Marcos and Duterte ran under the "Uniteam" ticket in the 2022
national election, becoming the Philippines' first top leaders
to win by majority since democracy was restored in 1986.
Last month, Marcos said the government was studying a possible
return to the International Criminal Court four years after the
Duterte-led government withdrew from the tribunal. An analyst
said at the time Marcos was veering away from his predecessor's
policies and breaking away from their alliance.
The presidential communications office did not immediately
respond to a request for comment on Duterte's remarks.
(Reporting by Mikhail Flores; Editing by Bernadette Baum and
Alison Williams)
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