Analysts say lawmaker Angel Suntay’s comments have become an ‘effective distraction’ against the vice-president’s impeachment proceedings
3-MIN READ3-MINSam BeltranPublished: 6:31pm, 4 Mar 2026A Philippine lawmaker has provoked outrage for what critics said were misogynistic remarks about one of the country’s most famous celebrities while attempting to defend Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio at a hearing deliberating her impeachment charges.The remarks, made during deliberations of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Justice on Tuesday, prompted objections from female lawmakers, calls for his statement to be removed from the record and warnings from officials that such comments could violate laws against gender-based harassment.
Suntay argued that Duterte-Carpio could not be penalised for expressing thoughts alone, comparing it to an imagined scenario involving one of the Philippines’ most prominent celebrities.
“Once I was in Shangri-La, I saw Anne Curtis. She is so beautiful. I felt a desire in me creep up. I felt the heat inside me and I imagined what could happen, but that is only my imagination. I don’t think I can be charged for the things I imagined,” he said.
Several female lawmakers present at the hearing objected immediately and moved to have Suntay’s remarks stricken from the record.
