Liberal Party Vice Presidential bet and Camarines Sur Representative Leni Robredo INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / RICHARD A. REYES
Liberal Party vice presidential candidate Ma. Leonor “Leni” Robredo asked the government and various interest groups to cease finger-pointing and focus on the interest and welfare of the drought-stricken farmers first.
“Walang mangyayari sa pagtuturuan dahil wala itong maitutulong para mapabuti ang kalagayan ng ating mga magsasaka (Nothing will come out of finger-pointing as it will not help the condition of our farmers),” Robredo said in a statement.
“Unahin muna natin tingnan ang kalagayan ng mga magsasaka, pati na ang kanilang mga pamilya, dahil alam naman natin na sila talaga’y naapektuhan ng mariing tagtuyot (Let us first focus on the welfare of the farmers and their families because they are the ones directly affected by drought),” she added.
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The Camarines Sur representative has earlier demanded that heads should roll at the aftermath of the violent dispersal of farmers which killed at least three people and injured scores of people.
“Bakit kailangang mangyari? Bakit kailangang may patayan? Bakit kailangang may barilan? Dapat sana hindi. Ang pinakabuod ng problema, marami na tayong kababayan sa Mindanao na naghihirap because of the drought,” Robredo said.
(Why did this have to happen? Why did people have to die? Why did guns have to be fired? It should have been avoided. The root of the problem is that many of our countrymen in Mindanao are suffering from the drought.)
The Palace has also supported Robredo’s call to mount an impartial probe on the incident, saying that it is waiting for the reports of the Commission on Human Rights and the Philippine National Police.
READ: Senate to probe Kidapawan incident
“The CHR is investigating the incident. The people should understand that this is something we do not want to happen,” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said on state-run radio dzRB on Sunday. CDG
