The Duterte world tour
By now, Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte will have embarked on a trip around the world, following an itinerary that would make even a Miss Universe titleholder green with envy: 16 countries, four continents, 67 days.
Without a word of excuse for what he intends to do or what he hopes to accomplish abroad, the lawmaker has emphasized that he is flying at his own expense. At the same time, he has asked the House of Representatives to allow him to attend sessions virtually—from where, only he would know: a ritzy airport lounge, a swanky hotel room, a cozy café?
What a charmed life indeed for this gentleman from Davao.
Even Malacañang couldn’t hold back a snippy comment, reminding Duterte that his district might want to know why its representative was about to hie off to Hong Kong, China; Malaysia; Indonesia; South Korea; Japan; Vietnam; Cambodia; United States; Australia; United Kingdom; the Netherlands; Germany; France; Belgium; Italy; and Singapore, from Dec. 15, 2025 to Feb. 20, 2026.
In fact, Duterte was also granted leave to travel to the exact same countries back in March, following his father’s arrest and detention in The Hague.
Public benefit
“His constituents probably also need to know that he is in another country and on vacation for more than two months … even if it’s not official travel, since public servants are supposed to serve the country,” Palace press Undersecretary Claire Castro said.
The issue, of course, is not just about who pays for his airfare and accommodations. Under Memorandum Circular No. 35 issued in 2017, government personnel may travel privately but only if they obtain authorization and only if the trip meets criteria related to mandate and public benefit.
Duterte may have satisfied the first requirement but is silent on the second: For a congressman, what part of hopping across Europe, North America, and Asia remotely resembles doing the work he was elected to do?
His letter to Speaker Faustino Dy III said much with little: “Rest assured that the expenses that will be incurred from this trip are from my personal funds alone. In addition, this is also to seek your kind indulgence in allowing this Representation to attend the scheduled plenary sessions and meetings virtually from the aforementioned dates.”
As ACT Teachers party list Rep. Antonio Tinio noted, a legislator cannot claim to participate in committee deliberations and plenary debates simply by watching the livestream.
A family tradition
A legislator’s primary job is to scrutinize budgets, exercise oversight over official wrongdoing, and propose, defend, or interrogate bills. These are tasks they cannot perform in front of a laptop screen.
A legislator must also face accountability processes, including the Independent Commission for Infrastructure, which has invited Duterte to respond to allegations of ghost flood control projects in his district. “While [Duterte] has the right to request travel clearances for foreign trips exceeding two months, he should make himself available to investigative bodies, such as the Office of the Ombudsman,” Bicol Saro party list Rep. Terry Ridon said.
Alas, Duterte is merely following a family tradition.
Like her brother, Vice President Sara Duterte has taken almost 20 trips abroad this year, mostly to the Netherlands, ostensibly to “visit” their father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, who is in the custody of the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.
Never mind that these visits have coincided with political rallies overseas, where the country’s No. 2 official meets and thanks supporters campaigning for her father’s release.
‘Leaders for common people’
It takes remarkable audacity to believe that public office is compatible with a globe-trotting calendar. But this is not just a matter of taste or propriety, for which both Duterte siblings have shown zero regard; it speaks to their reluctance to shoulder the weight of their elective positions.
The Dutertes have long styled themselves as “leaders for the common people.” Yet even they could never claim that ordinary Filipinos have benefited from their frequent excursions abroad. Government service demands presence; it requires being seen and heard by the people they answer to and to whom they owe their power and influence.
If Duterte wishes to see the world, he may freely do so as a private citizen. Until then, his time is not his own. Likewise, if Sara Duterte intends to wage an international campaign for her father’s cause or hers, the appropriate moment is after her term—not while taxpayers are paying for her empty offices and idle personnel back home.
Civil service does not deprive officials of the right to travel, but no self-respecting civil servant will argue that a “Duterte world tour” is a legitimate exercise of that. Leadership demands service, commitment, and presence. If the Dutertes aren’t able to meet that obligation, then perhaps they are not fit to carry the burdens of public office.
