FACT CHECK: No House coup to replace Speaker Bojie Dy with Arroyo

Claim: House Speaker Bojie Dy will be replaced by former president and Pampanga 2nd District Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo through a coup in the House involving Vice President Sara Duterte.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim appeared on a Facebook page posing as a news outlet with 43,000 followers, and as of writing, the post has 11,300 likes, 1,500 comments, and 487 shares.

Text overlaid on the photo reads: “New speaker Arroyo, Kongreso nagmotion na. Kamara nabaliktad na. Gloria ipapalit na kay Speaker Dy, kudeta na.”

(New Speaker Arroyo, the Congress has already made a motion. The House has been overturned. Gloria will replace Speaker Dy. It’s now a coup.)

The post’s caption further claims that an alleged alliance between Arroyo and Duterte is forming to overturn the leadership in Congress.

The facts: Dy remains in his post, and there is currently no verified move to replace him. There is also no credible evidence that Arroyo is staging a “coup” in the House or that she is working with Duterte to take over the speakership. No official statements, news reports, or confirmed sources support these allegations.

Arroyo has already denied the claim, stating on April 10 that she is not involved in any effort to unseat Dy. “I categorically deny the allegations concerning the supposed ouster of Speaker Bojie Dy that surfaced yesterday,” Arroyo said in a statement. (READ: Arroyo denies plotting to oust Speaker Bojie Dy)

She also reaffirmed her confidence in Dy’s leadership in the House of Representatives and stressed that their political relationship, which dates back to his late father, remains intact.

The claim emerged amid heightened political tension in Congress, coinciding with the House justice committee’s second public hearing on the impeachment complaint against Duterte on Tuesday, April 14. 

During the hearing, Duterte again failed to attend, while key witness and self-confessed former “bagman” Ramil Madriaga testified before lawmakers, alleging that he coordinated with the Vice President’s security personnel in transporting wads of cash, reportedly linked to confidential funds. (READ: LIVE: Ramil Madriaga, other key witnesses testify at Sara Duterte impeachment hearing)

Ouster allegations: Arroyo has repeatedly been linked to allegations of involvement in House leadership ouster moves, although such claims have varied in substantiation.

In 2018, she became Speaker of the House after then-speaker Pantaleon Alvarez was removed through a signed majority manifesto and plenary proceedings on July 23, during the opening of the 17th Congress. Lawmakers later voted to install her as the new Speaker, a leadership change widely described in reports as a successful ouster backed by a congressional bloc.

In 2023, she was again drawn into speakership-related speculations after House leadership tensions surfaced. She was eventually ousted as deputy speaker after choosing not to sign House Resolution 1414, which expressed support for then-speaker Martin Romualdez. Her removal was framed by House leaders as a matter of internal alignment, while rumors circulated at the time alleging she was being linked to attempts to unseat Romualdez. – Marjuice Destinado/Rappler.com

Marjuice Destinado is a senior political science student at Cebu Normal University (CNU) and an alumna of the Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship of Rappler for 2025.

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