Who’s the ‘impakta?’
What began as an unfinished acronym in a social media video ended with Palace press officer Claire Castro returning a veiled insult to Sen. Imee Marcos.
On Tuesday, Marcos posted a video reel in which she claimed the International Criminal Court (ICC) was in trouble after the United States launched a campaign to dismantle the international tribunal based in The Hague, the Netherlands.
The video also suggested there was another ‘ICC’ inside Malacañang, referring to ‘Impaktang Clai.’ However, the video ended before the full meaning of ‘ICC’ could be revealed.
‘If they’re the ones who used that word, then they know what it means. They know what the word ‘impakta’ describes,’ Castro said. ‘After all, it takes one to know one.’
Impakta in Filipino folklore refers to a bad spirit or demon. But the word may also be used to describe someone with a scary or ugly appearance.
Ad hominem
Castro suggested that the ad hominem attacks against her stemmed from her repeated efforts to counter the fake news allegedly being spread by Marcos and her supporters.
For the Palace official, the people who ‘truly embody’ the definition of impakta are those who made the video and appear in it.
‘And they shouldn’t worry-the crown belongs to them, to Senator Imee and her group. I have no intention of taking it away from them,’ Castro said.
‘I am not even close to Senator Imee when it comes to that kind of description. They are already at the maximum level,’ she added.
The exchange marks the latest public clash between the Palace and the President’s sister, whose criticisms of his administration have become increasingly pointed amid political tensions.
Allies of former President Rodrigo Duterte, including Senator Marcos, have expressed their support for the US government’s campaign to pressure other nations ‘to withdraw from the ICC and cut off any financial support to the court.’
The Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute that created the ICC in 2019 during the term of then President Rodrigo Duterte to stop the international tribunal from investigating his war on drugs. The withdrawal took effect a year later.
In March 2025, Duterte was arrested by Philippine authorities and turned over to the ICC on charges of crimes against humanity. His trial will begin in November.
The ICC has also issued a warrant of arrest against Sen. Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa, for being a coperpetrator in the drug war as the former Philippine National Police.