Senator Grace Poe (left) and Congresswoman Leni Robredo. INQUIRER FILE PHOTOS
They are two of the more intriguing personalities heading into the 2016 elections. But could there be a brewing rift between Senator Grace Poe and Camarines Sur representative (3rd district) Leni Robredo?
The perceived beef stemmed from a comment made by Poe during one of her talks in Pangasinan when she compared the citizenship issue raised against her with the one raised against Robredo’s husband, the late former Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo.
Mrs. Robredo, however, explained that the citizenship cases between the senator and her husband are different.
“Iba talaga. ‘Yung kaso ng asawa ko, sinasabi, ‘yung accusation na Chinese citizen daw ‘yung asawa ko kasi hindi siya nagpanaturalize kasi ‘yung tatay niya, ‘yung allegation, was a Chinese citizen. Pero naprove na naman ‘yun na hindi,” Robredo on Tuesday night told ABS-CBN newscast “Bandila.”
(They’re completely different. My husband was accused of being a Chinese citizen because his father was a Chinese citizen and he allegedly did not go through a naturalization process. But that has been proven to be not true.)
‘Yung kaso yata ni Senator Poe, iba naman. ‘Yung kaso niya parang ang question dun, at one point in her life, nagrenounce siya ng Filipino citizenship. ‘Yung asawa ko hindi naman dumaan sa ganun. Parang ‘yung asawa ko, never in his life siya nagrenounce ng citizenship. Ang kinikwestyon d’un sa asawa ko, ‘yung citizenship ng tatay niya, kasi ‘yung tatay niya, full-blooded na Chinese pero born in the Philippines. Kaya ibang-iba ‘yung premise dun sa questions ng citizenship.”
(The case of Senator Poe is different. The question in her case is whether at one point in her life, she renounced her Filipino citizenship. My husband never went through that. My husband never renounced his citizenship. My husband’s citizenship was questioned because his father was a full-blooded Chinese but born in the Philippines. The premises in the questions on their citizenship are different.)
Several critics including members of the camp of Vice President Jejomar Binay and Rizalito David have questioned the citizenship of Poe.
READ: David files second poll case vs Poe, wants her jailed | A ‘foundling’: UNA claims new dope on Poe
Poe on Tuesday submitted before the Senate Electoral tribunal her birth certificate and travel records to prove that she is Filipino.
READ: Poe submits documents to electoral tribunal to prove citizenship
When asked by anchor Ces Drilon if she did not like the comparison made by Poe, Robredo said, “Hindi naman. Wala akong judgment, wala akong anything. I was just asked to comment on the statement kaya kinlarify ko na iba. Iba ‘yung issue.”
(Not really. I have no judgement. I have no anything. I was just asked to comment on the statement so I just clarified that their issues are different.)
When asked by anchor Karen Davila if Poe still deserves to run for President if it were proven that she had renounced her citizenship, Robredo tried to reason but Davila prodded her to answer “yes” or “no” only. The congresswoman then replied “no.”
Poe still ‘preferred’ VP for Roxas
Robredo, however, maintained that Poe is still an ideal running-mate for Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II.
READ: Roxas: ‘Mar-Poe’ like ‘AlDub’
“Matagal ko naman na sinasabi na mas maigi kung pumayag si Senator Poe na siya na lang ang magvice president kay Secretary Mar para hindi na maghiwa-hiwalay,” Robredo said.
(I have long said that it will be better if Senator Poe decides to run as Secretary Mar’s vice president so we do not have to part ways.)
Robredo is also one of the personalities being considered to be Roxas’ running mate, but has so far said that she does not intend to run for vice president. Poe, on the other hand, is still being courted by Roxas to run alongside him despite leading him in the latest presidential surveys.
READ: Leni Robredo: ‘VP position too important for neophyte like me’
“Kaming mga nasa LP, umaasa pa rin. Although admittedly, parang lumalabo, hindi tayo nawawalan ng Pagasa. Siya pa rin ang preference,” Robredo added.
(We in LP are still hoping she’ll join us. Although admittedly, the chances are getting slimmer, we are not losing hope. She’s still the preference.) Ivan Angelo L. de Lara