VP to gov’t execs: Do a good job even with a ‘difficult’ boss

Vice President Leni Robredo shares her own experience to the graduates of Angat Buhay Young Leaders in Government Fellowship during its Graduation Ceremony on November 27, 2019 at the Office of the Vice President in Quezon City. Noy Morcoso/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo might have been speaking from experience when she offered sound advice to people saddled with a hostile boss in a government job: Do your work well and remain unaffected even if it’s the boss who’s making your job difficult.

In a speech before 39 graduates of her flagship project Angat Buhay’s program for young leaders in government, Robredo clearly alluded to President Rodrigo Duterte who fired her this week as cochair of an interagency body against illegal drugs after only 18 days in office when she asked for a list of high-value drug targets.

“True leaders say to themselves, ‘I will not be discouraged, even if my boss is standing in my way. If he tries to hamper what I am doing, I will find other ways to do my job,’” Robredo said in Filipino.

Robredo, who was offered the post by Duterte after she said in a media interview that the government’s war on drugs was ineffective, had been bullied by administration allies since she accepted the job that Duterte critics had described as a trap set for her to fail.

“In the end, the most important consideration for me was simple: if this was a chance to stop the killings of innocent people and put accountability on those responsible behind drug crimes, then I will bear it,” she had said earlier about overcoming her reservations and taking on the job.

Robredo advised those who may face similarly discouraging circumstances to accept the situation and reminded them that the only things under their control were their own actions.

“I have also gone through tests that involve difficult choices, [and what I learned] is that the challenge is really how to find your light in the midst of darkness, how to find solutions in an environment where the limitations given you are just too much,” the Vice President said.

Robredo cautioned young government leaders that while it would be tempting to pass the buck when one has an uncooperative boss, they should fight against that impulse.

Despite her dismissal, the Vice President pledged to continue working to help solve the country’s illegal drug problems.

Reacting to Robredo’s “tirades and threats,” presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the remarks were “unsurprising”  since “there is no greater fury than a woman scorned.”

He added: “Robredo was given a lamp by PRRD to illuminate her way, but she carelessly broke it and is back to where she was, groping with a blind vision.”

Panelo also compared the President’s good survey ratings with “the rambunctious critic’s consistenly very low [ratings].”