VP poll protest becoming avenue of lies, must be resolved soon – Robredo

MANILA, Philippines – The election protest of former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. against her must soon be resolved to avoid transforming it to an avenue for spreading lies, Vice President Ma. Leonor “Leni” Robredo said Monday.

“Wish ko lang na dapat matuldukan na ‘yong protest kasi nagiging avenue siya for spreading more lies. Nagiging platform siya para ‘yong mga kasinungalingan lalong ma-propagate (My wish is for this protest to end because it has become an avenue to spread lies. It has become a platform to propagate lies),” Robredo said in an interview over ABS-CBN News Channel.

“Ako, alam ko ang totoo e. Pero siya, madami siya napapapaniwala. Mas kawawa sila e, mas kawawa napapaniwala niya sa kasinungalingan (Me, I know the truth. But he manages to deceive more people. I pity those who believe the lies),” she added.

Voting 11-2, the Supreme Court, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), again deferred ruling on whether or not to dismiss or proceed with the Marcos election protest.

The high court, instead, required both parties to comment on the recount results within 20 days.

Three days after, the PET released its report, which showed that the recount of votes in three pilot provinces chosen by Marcos showed that Robredo increased her lead over Marcos by 15,093 votes.

The Vice President had earlier asked the high tribunal not to change the rules, saying the PET’s own Rule 65 provides that a protest should be dismissed outright if the recount showed no significant gain in the number of votes for the protesting party.

Only Associate Justices Antonio Carpio and Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa voted to dismiss the electoral protest outright.

Marcos, a known ally of President Rodrigo Duterte, lost to Robredo in the 2016 national elections by about 280,000 votes. /gsg