MANILA, Nov 25: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos said Monday his family was "very worried" about his senator sister, suggesting she was unwell after she accused him of drug abuse at a recent rally.
The accusation was the latest broadside in a family feud that has steadily grown in scope since Imee Marcos publicly aligned with the president's arch-foe, Vice President Sara Duterte, ahead of midterm elections that were held in May.
In his first public comments about his older sister since she told a crowd of demonstrators in Manila last week he had an "addiction", the 68-year-old president said he did not "like to show our dirty linen in public".
He went on to say that "for a while now, we've been very worried about my sister... The reason is because that lady you see talking on TV is not my sister," adding that the wider Marcos family shared that view.
"I hope she feels better soon."
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The president was speaking at the launch of a "transparency portal" aimed at identifying bogus flood control projects that have cost taxpayers billions -- a scandal that was the focus of last week's rally where his sister spoke.
Asked if he intended to speak with his sister, the president said: "We no longer travel in the same circles, political or otherwise. So no."
Moments later, Imee Marcos, 70, posted a message on Facebook challenging her brother to "prove me wrong".
- 'Ghost' projects -
Rage over "ghost" infrastructure projects has been building in the country for months, ever since President Marcos put the issue centre stage in a July address after weeks of deadly flooding.
Scores of construction firm owners, government officials and lawmakers in the archipelago country have been accused of pocketing funds for substandard projects.
On November 17, the senator took the stage at an anti-corruption rally organised by a religious sect with ties to the Duterte family and said the president's drug abuse was the root issue behind the scandal.
His "addiction", she told the crowd, was "the reason for the flood of corruption, lack of direction and very wrong decisions".
His spokeswoman dismissed the claim as "baseless" later that night.
On Monday, the government touted the arrest of eight Department of Public Works and Highways officials charged over the scandal.
But the biggest name to face a warrant so far, former congressman Elizaldy Co, has fled the country and filed videos from abroad accusing Marcos of being a prime beneficiary of the corruption.
Marcos slammed the video campaign as an example of "fake news".
"Anyone can go online and make all kinds of claims and say all kinds of things repeatedly. It means nothing," Marcos said, calling on Co to return to the Philippines to face charges.
