Robredo surprised, glad over Duterte’s defense of OVP efforts vs COVID-19

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo admitted Sunday that she was surprised over President Rodrigo Duterte’s defending her efforts to assist the government in the nation’s battle against COVID-19.

“Nagulat, in the sense na for a very long time, hindi natin napapakinggan si Presidente na pinagtatanggol tayo,” Robredo told ANC in an interview.

(I  was surprised, in the sense that for a very long, we have not heard of the President defending me.)

“Pero ngayon na pinagtanggol tayo, natuwa tayo. Natuwa, dahil tingin ko, kailangan iyon sa panahon ngayon. Kailangan sa panahon ngayon na parating iyong mensahe magtulung-tulungan tayo,” she added.

(Now that he has defended me, I felt glad. Happy, because in my view, that’s what we all need at this time. We need to send the message that we are helping each other during this crisis.)

In a public address on Friday, the Chief Executive not only defended Robredo but also fired Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) Commissioner Manuelito Luna, who urged the National Bureau of Investigation to investigate the Vice President for allegedly competing with the national government’s efforts to deal with COVID-19.

“Para sa akin kasi, I think it was a good move. Sa amin, welcome move iyon, kasi ang panahon ngayon natin, extraordinary—hindi dapat tino-tolerate iyong kahit individual o public official na siya pa iyong nagso-sow ng division within government,” the Vice President said when asked about her reaction on Duterte’s move to sack Luna.

(For me, I think it was a good move. For us, it is a welcome move because during a time like this, it is extraordinary. We should not tolerate an individual or a public official who is sowing division within the government.)

“Eh iyong ginawa noong Commissioner Luna, parang kinukuwestiyon niya iyong ginagawa natin na pag-collaborate with the private sector para makatulong sa ginagawa ngayon ng pamahalaan. Binrand niya iyon na ‘competition’,” Robredo added.

(What Commissioner Luna did was he questioned our efforts to collaborate with the private sector to help with government’s efforts. He branded it as a competition.)

KGA