Sara Duterte-Carpio, the daughter of the outgoing president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, was sworn in as vice president on Sunday following a landslide victory last month.
The inauguration took place in her hometown of Davao, where she will leave her role as mayor to assume the new post on June 30.
“I’m not the best or the most intelligent person in the Philippines and the world but nobody can beat the toughness of my heart as a Filipino,” Duterte-Carpio said in a speech after taking her oath before a Supreme Court justice.
“The voice of 32.2 million Filipinos was loud and clear — with the message to serve our motherland,” she added.
Duterte-Carpio, 44, ran alongside Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who won the presidency on May 9 in a sweeping victory. Marcos, the son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos, also supported Duterte-Caprio at the inauguration ceremony.
The newly elected vice president previously served as the first female mayor of Davao starting in 2010. Duterte-Carpio took her first political role in 2007 as vice mayor under her father, who then led the city as mayor.
The two controversial names now set to lead the Philippines are not without critics.
“In the Philippines, political dynasties dominate — with the Marcos family being among the most well known. Ferdinand Marcos, his wife, Imelda, daughter Imee and son have all held political posts in or representing the province of Ilocos Norte,” The Washington Post reported.
The human rights group Karapatan called on the public to express rejection of Marcos Jr. and Duterte-Carpio’s victory.
“We call on the public to express our rejection of the Marcos Jr.-Sara Duterte tandem in the 2022 polls and beyond,” the group said following the May election.
“The two represent the worst brand of traditional politics and governance in our nation’s history — one that promotes authoritarianism as a response to legitimate exercise of political dissent, upholds mendicancy to foreign interests over national sovereignty, and uses an empty and fake rhetoric of unity to sugarcoat their incompetence to respond to social problems and their adherence to neoliberal policies that will further demean human dignity,” the statement added.
Outgoing President Duterte made headlines last year when he commanded citizens to get vaccinated against COVID-19, threatening them with prison time or forced injection of a drug if they refused the vaccine.
Duterte could be seen threatening the public during a June 2021 speech, according to a video released by The Guardian.
“You choose, get vaccinated or I will have you jailed. I’m telling you, those police jail cells are filthy and foul-smelling, police are lazy in cleaning. That is where you’ll be,” he said.
The video clip cut to another moment when Duterte says, “You get vaccinated, otherwise I will order all the village heads to have a tally of the people who refuse to be vaccinated. Because if not I will inject them with Ivermectin which is intended for pigs.”