Calamity-prone PH needs president ‘who shows up’ like Robredo — Tañada
MANILA, Philippines — Calamity-prone countries, such as the Philippines, need a president “who shows up” like Vice President Leni Robredo, former congressman Erin Tañada said Monday.
Tañada, who also serves as the campaign manager of Robredo’s senatorial slate, pointed out that the Philippines is among the most vulnerable countries to natural and human-made calamities.
“A president who shows up. At kumpleto sa ‘resibo’ sa bayan… [Robredo] is the kind of leader that a calamity-prone country needs,” Tañada said in a statement.
“That is the kind of president the Philippines should have,” he added.
Tañada made the remark in light of Robredo’s pronouncements during the debate organized by the Commission on Elections, where she said that the Philippines needs a president who will rush aid to citizens in distress and make personal sacrifices to help those in need.
“If you have lost your job to the pandemic, your home to a typhoon, your farm to floods, that is a comforting statement that you want to hear,” Tañada said.
According to Tañada, Robredo has even transformed her office into a repacking center for relief goods during calamities, adding that for the vice president, disaster response “is not a slogan or a line fed by advisers, but a cause she has devoted herself to.”
“Kita niyo naman, ang opisina niya ginawa niyang bodega ng relief goods, ang compound parang malaking repacking center,” Tañada said.
“Bago mag-pandemic ginawa nya na yon. She walks the talk,” he added.
Tañada likewise stressed that Robredo has proof to back up her efforts to respond in times of calamities, including the pandemic.
“One, she issued that promissory note yesterday. Second, she has receipts to show that she’s been doing the things she is promising the people,” Tañada said.
“It has been inculcated in her because she sees it as part of her duties as vice president even if that is not in the official job description of the VP,” he added.
Robredo earlier said that with or without the elections, she was there to help Filipinos in times of disaster.
“Ang kailangan po natin ay ang pangulo na magmamadaling samahan ka ‘pag nahihirapan ka, handang magsakripisyo para tulungan ka, handang harapin kahit sino para ipaglaban ka,” said Robredo.
“Ako po, may eleksyon o wala, bagyo man, kahit anong sakuna, pandemya, kahit anong problema, nandito po ako… Kahit po anong kuwento ang ipakalat sa akin, ang totoo kumpleto po kami ng resibo,” she added.
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