Robredo vows to release plans detailing proper COVID-19 response

Vice President Leni Robredo. File photo / Charlie Villegas of OVP

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo has announced that she and her team would release a set of plans — formulated with the help of health experts and people on the ground — aimed at helping the country move past the COVID-19 pandemic.

Robredo said on Tuesday that she will be releasing the framework of the plan as her recent trips to various parts of the country like her visit to the Bicol Region the previous week really showed that the health crisis affected everyone.

“Bukas, maglalabas kami ng video. Balangkas ito ng plano para makalaya tayo sa COVID. Base ito sa pakikipag-usap natin sa mga eksperto, kasama na dito ang mga epidemiologist, mga public health consultants, mga ekonomista, at iba pa,” she said in a prepared video released by the Office of the Vice President.

(Tomorrow, we will release a video.  This is a framework of how we can be free from COVID, based on our discussions with experts, including epidemiologists, public health consultants, economists, and people from other sectors.)

“Higit sa lahat, hinango natin ang mga solusyon sa aktuwal na karanasan ng mga nurse, ng mga doktor, ng mga empleyado, at karaniwang Pilipinong nagtitiis at nagsasakripisyo, at nagluluksa ngayong pandemya,” she added.

(More importantly, we also formed our solutions from the actual experience of nurses, doctors, employees, and the Filipino people who have been enduring, sacrificing, and grieving during this pandemic.)

The Vice President, who is running for president in the 2022 national elections, also pleaded to her supporters to try helping people who have been affected by the pandemic in whatever way — from economic crises to getting infected, or even for people who lost loved ones to COVID-19.

“Ang pakiusap ko sana sa inyo, sabay ng pagsusuot ng pink bukas: Mag-reach out sa mga nagkasakit, sa mga namatayan, sa mga nawalan ng trabaho at kabuhayan. Mga dumaan sa hirap dahil sa COVID. Damhin ang pinagdaanan nila; ang pangamba at kawalang-katiyakan na nagbibigkis sa ating lahat,” Robredo said.

(My call for you is as you wear pink tomorrow, please reach out to those who got sick, whose relatives died, and those who lost their jobs and livelihood due to COVID-19.  And the people had a hard time because of COVID-19.  Let us share in their challenges and understand the worries and uncertainty that bind us all.)

“Ibahagi ang katotohanan: Kung may malinaw na stratehiyang nagbubukal sa malasakit, makakalaya tayo mula sa pandemya. Sa mga nakasama natin sa COVID response initiatives natin, ikuwento ninyo: Hindi lang pangako ang plano natin. Napatunayan na natin ang kayang gawin ng malinis at maayos na pamamahala,” she added.

(Share the truth: If there is a clear strategy that would come out from taking care of people, we would be free from the pandemic.  For those who were with us during our office’s COVID-19 response, tell the stories: we are not just making plans based on promises only.  We have already proven that we can do it through a clean and orderly form of governance.)

Robredo’s supporters have launched a movement called “Pink Wednesdays”, where people who back the Vice President’s candidacy wear pink or share photos on social media adorned with the said color, in reference to the motif adopted for her campaign.

In the past, Robredo also lauded volunteers for helping set up feeding programs and assistance desks on her behalf, saying that these acts are a good way of being of service to people affected by the economic downturn.

READ: Robredo to supporters: ‘Pink’ must also be experienced, help others 

However, her supporters have also come under fire for being elitist, and for being exclusive in their discussions with opposing camps on social media.  Robredo recently released reminders asking her supporters to calm down, saying that her campaign is rooted on inclusivity and not othering people who are not on their side.

READ: Don’t do that: Robredo to supporters calling to boycott restos supportive of Marcos 

READ: Robredo to supporters: Be calm, gentle and do good deeds 

Robredo is squaring off against several candidates for 2022’s presidential race, including Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, Senators Panfilo Lacson, Manny Pacquiao, Ronald dela Rosa, labor leader Leody de Guzman, and former senator Bongbong Marcos.

JPV