Manila, March 19 -- Malacanang denied Wednesday that former president Rodrigo Duterte's arrest and surrender to the International Criminal Court (ICC) was a diversionary tactic to deflect scrutiny from issues surrounding the Philippine Health Insurance's (PhilHealth) idle fund and the 2025 national budget.

This, after Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte accused the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. of singling out his family.

Duterte also claimed that the Marcos administration was trying to divert public attention from concerns over the transfer of PhilHealth's excess funds to the national treasury and the constitutionality of the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA).

Speaking to Palace reporters, Presidential Communi...