MANILA, Philippines — Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro slammed House Assistant Minority Leader and Kabataan Party-list Rep. Renee Co after she criticized the conferment of an honorary Doctor of Laws degree on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. by the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM).
The PLM earlier conferred the president an honorary Doctor of Laws (Honoris Causa) on August 27, drawing criticisms on social media.
Co—who is also a lawyer—said the conferment "is an insult to the hundreds of lawyers, who studied day in and day out to refine their knowledge of the law and ensure that said knowledge serves the most vulnerable,” claiming that Marcos is the complete opposite of those aspiring lawyers.
In a video message, Castro said Co's criticisms demonstrated arrogance rather than sound legal reasoning.
“Congressman Co’s criticism of PLM’s decision to confer an honorary degree upon the country’s highest leader merely exposes her own shortcomings,” she said in Filipino.
“The achievements of the president are likely things Congressman Renee Co has never accomplished. She certainly has never saved a life from a situation where the death penalty was a certainty,” she added.
She added that many of the critics online may not be aware of what an honoris causa is.
