Being president is a matter of destiny, not ambition, says Robredo

(FILE) Vice President Leni Robredo. INQUIRER PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo on Saturday said that it was never her ambition to become the country’s next president as it is destiny that dictates who becomes president.

“Hindi ko naman in-ambisyon maging pangulo. Parati ko itong inuulit na ang presidency naman destiny iyon, eh. I mean, no amount of preparation will ever prepare you para sa eleksyon,” Robredo told reporters during the launch of the Office of the Vice President’s Vaccine Express in Magalang, Pampanga.

(It is not my ambition to become president. You become president if it is your destiny. No amount of preparation will ever prepare you for the elections.)

Robredo added that her decision to run or not to run for president is also anchored on two objectives: Preventing a style of governance like that of President Rodrigo Duterte and blocking the return of the Marcos family to Malacañang.

“Iyong parati kong sinasabi, kung kinakailangan na tumakbo ako para hindi mangyari iyong — para mangyari iyong dalawang objectives, tatakbo ako. Pero kung para hindi mangyari iyong objective na iyon, dapat hindi ako tumakbo, hindi ako tatakbo,” she reiterated.

(As I have always said, if I need to run for president to prevent those two things from happening, then I will run. But I may also not run if I can prevent those from happening by not running.)

Robredo, who has yet to declare her plans for the 2022 polls, has admitted to having initiated talks with presidential candidates Senator Manny Pacquiao, Senator Panfilo Lacson, and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno to forge a unity ticket.

This was despite the calls from former senator Sonny Trillanes IV for her to make a decision, saying unity talks are now “moot” with the recent declarations of Pacquiao, Lacson, and Moreno of their presidential candidacies.

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