De Lima speaks on running for the Senate in 2016

Screengrab from #lima2016 Twitter

Humbled and scared was how Justice Secretary Leila de Lima described her feelings amid calls for her to run for the Senate in 2016.

On Monday, supporters of De Lima launched #Lima2016 at the Serye restaurant in Quezon City to urge the Justice secretary to run for the legislature.

De Lima claims that she has yet to decide whether to seek a Senate seat.

The organizers said De Lima should be in the Senate so that she could continue the reforms she started when was still head of the Commission on Human Rights and as Secretary of the Department of Justice.

According to them, such reforms included enhancing access to social and economic rights, overhauling the criminal justice system, protecting human trafficking victims, and putting a stop to human trafficking, neglect and other forms of abuse.

“I am aware of that activity but I’m not involved,” de Lima said in a text message Monday.

“It is purely an initiative of volunteers, some of whom I know (friends, classmates, sorority sisters, kababayans) and some I do not know (total strangers). I am of course heartened and humbled by such a move. Yet scared,” De Lima added.

The Justice Chief said she was scared because of the pressure, noting that politics was new territory for her.

Last June, De Lima said work in politics was not a problem but mudslinging was another thing.

“So tinitingnan ko muna kung kaya ko pumasok sa mundo ng politika, kasi hindi ako sanay sa mundong (yon),” (I will see if I can enter politics because I am not used to that world) the secretary said.

“Kung trabaho, kaya yan. Pero the environment itself, I would not know if I’m cut out for it,” (If it’s the work, I can do it, but the environment …) she added.

De Lima is reportedly being eyed for the senatorial lineup of the ruling Liberal Party.

She said that if ever she made a decision, it would have to be 100 percent. If only half-hearted, she will not be an effective public servant.