Kitty Duterte visits cancer-stricken kids as vlog donation fulfills Duterte promise

Kitty Duterte visits House of Hope in Davao City, Philippines on May 14, 2025. CHITO SAMONTINA

Veronica “Kitty” Duterte, daughter of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte, paid a touching visit to children with cancer at House of Hope in Davao City, a center long supported by her father. On Thursday (May 15), social media personality Chito Samontina shared on Facebook that he and Kitty visited the facility to deliver a P100,000 donation, fulfilling a promise he made to the older Duterte to donate his vlog earnings. “I promised before that if I could feature PRRD (Rodrigo Duterte) in CHITchat, the earnings will go to his beloved House of Hope. It was already in the schedule before he was forcibly taken to The Hague,” Samontina said in Bisaya. Duterte, who was arrested in March and is currently detained at the International Criminal Court in The Hague over alleged crimes against humanity, is a known patron of House of Hope. Samontina revealed that Kitty had long been a requested guest on his vlog, but only recently agreed. “Because of her love for her father, she agreed,” he said. The visit was emotional and heartwarming. Photos showed Kitty gently cradling a young cancer patient. Many of the children—some bald from chemotherapy—smiled as they received Jollibee meals with toys. “I told her about donating the earnings, and without second thought, she said the money should go to House of Hope. She insisted that we visit right away, even if she has not rested enough and has to go back to Manila to resume her studies,” Samontina added. “You can see the happiness in their eyes, but sometimes you can’t help but shed a tear—especially Kitty, who shared her love to the children whom her father loved dearly,” he said. Samontina expressed gratitude to Kitty and Duterte, saying, “It is encouraging to see the children who, despite what they are going through, are still genuinely smiling.” Meanwhile, Duterte made headlines again after he won re-election as mayor of Davao City in the May 12 midterm elections—despite being in detention abroad. His son, Sebastian Duterte, was elected vice mayor and is expected to assume mayoral duties if his father remains in The Hague. CAM/Expat Media