Kim Chiu says ‘deserved’ remark on ‘Showtime’ not alluding to Duterte’s arrest

Kim Chiu shut down talk that her spiel on “It’s Showtime” Tuesday about “deserving a break” was alluding to former President Rodrigo Duterte who was arrested to answer for charges of committing crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court in The Netherlands.

Chiu was accused by a netizen of taking a dig at Duterte, who is now en route to the ICC headquarters in The Hague after his arrest upon the request of the international police (Interpol) in order for him to stand trial for his alleged crimes in connection with his bloody war on drugs.

During the noontime show’s March 12-episode, Chiu was among the hosts who read the introductory spiels.

“Para naman sa mga feeling nila ay hindi pa dumarating ang tamang panahon para sa kanila, ang masasabi namin [ay] deserve… Wait, ‘di pa ako tapos—deserve niyong rumesbak sa buhay!” she said during the show, which was a reference to the show’s “Tawag ng Tanghalan: All-Star Grand Resbak 2025” segment.

The netizen apparently misinterpreted Chiu’s spiel and claimed that the TV host said Duterte “deserved to be jailed.” He further pointed out that Duterte had 30 million supporters, some of whom may be her fans.

Seeing the post, Chiu said that she was merely reading the script, and that she was npt taking a jab at the embattled Duterte.

“Hala nakakaloka! Bat ako nasali dyan?! Like o to the M to the G!” Chiu wrote on her X page while sharing a screenshot of the netizen’s post.

“Busy ako sa ibang bagay. Diyos ko, ‘wag niyo ko isali sa ganyan. Parang awa niyo na,” she added. “Ang gulo na po ng mundong ibabaw. ‘Wag na tayo dumagdag.”

In a separate post on her Facebook page, Chiu showed a copy of the “It’s Showtime” script she read and warned her fans against the false claim spread by the netizen.

“Please read full context bago maniwala sa FAKE NEWS na pinapakalat dito sa Facebook,” she appealed.

Addressing the netizen who posted the false claim, she continued, “Sir, wag po kayo mandamay sa nanahimik na tao. May God bless you and your family and your peace of mind.”

Aside from Chiu, her fellow “It’s Showtime” host Vice Ganda also became a subject of false claims after a fake quote card attributed to him circulated on social media. The quote card claimed that Vice Ganda praised Duterte for his leadership amid his arrest.

Duterte was arrested on Tuesday, March 11, after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for him for crimes against humanity, despite pleas from his family and allies to let him go due to health reasons and supposed infirmities in his arrest.