Robredo: No to another upheaval; Duterte deserves our support

Vice President Leni Robredo INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu – Vice President Leni Robredo has reiterated her support for President Duterte after her party was allegedly plotting to unseat the Chief Executive.

Robredo told reporters on Tuesday afternoon that it is everyone’s obligation to support the President.

“He’s our only President and he deserves our support. We can’t afford, as a country, to have another upheaval,” she told reporters in a pre-dinner conference at Rico’s Lechon in Lapu-Lapu City, on Mactan Island, Cebu.
She stressed that the success of the Duterte presidency is the success of the nation and any attempt to destroy his administration should be discouraged because it will not be good for the country.

Tuesday was Robredo’s third official visit to Cebu, which gave her a resounding victory over her closest opponent, former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

She arrived at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) about 5 p.m.

Robredo, who is also chairperson of  Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC),  came from  Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga del Norte.

She was scheduled to fly to Eastern Samar on Wednesday.

On Monday, President Duterte accused LP, Robredo’s party, of mounting moves to unseat him by highlighting the issue of human rights violations.

“Let’s not fool ourselves. Do you know who’s behind this? It’s the yellow,” the President said, referring to the LP’s political color.

Robredo said she doesn’t know where these rumors came from as LP hasn’t met as a party since last May elections.

She said she intends to discuss this matter with President Duterte personally, just to assure him that he has the LP’s support.

Robredo recalled how LP members in the House of Representatives and the Senate formed an alliance with the majority party, the Partido Demokratikong Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), and vowed to support the President.

“Nothing has changed,” she said, adding that her support for President Duterte has never been diminished by their differences in opinion on policies.

Being supportive, she explained, doesn’t mean agreeing all the time. Sometimes, she added, parties can always agree to disagree.

One of these was the announcement of President Duterte on his plan to pull out the American troops from Mindanao.

Robredo said the plan should be studied thoroughly in the wake of the ongoing war against the Abu Sayyaf bandit group.

“I think the President is really looking into this matter. He will decide accordingly. I think this is the President’s statement that shows we are seeking an independent foreign policy. It would be good for our country to pursue an independent foreign policy, but I just hope this wouldn’t be done in haste,” she said.

Robredo said she hopes whatever decision will be reached is a result of a long and thorough study.

Civilian safety isn’t the only factor that should be taken into account, but also the lives of the soldiers sent to Mindanao.

In the midst of an all-out war against the Abu Sayyaf Group, Robredo said the country has lost so many lives already in a span of two weeks.

“While that is their basic obligation, we also need to do everything we can to protect them,” said Robredo.

Robredo said she will fly to Eastern Samar on Wednesday to visit poor communities.

The Vice President said she is going around the country in search of the poorest communities as well as communities that used to be poor but have turned things around.

Robredo said she intends to take best practices from similarly situated areas and apply these to places where poverty is rampant.

Among the places she plans to visit is Siayan in Zamboanga del Norte, which was considered to be the Philippines’ poorest municipality from 2003 to 2009.

“Now, it’s a second class municipality already. I’ve met the mayor many times, multi-awarded. I want to see what the mayor did,” Robredo said, referring to Siayan Mayor Flora Villarosa.

While she was in Zamboanga del Norte on Tuesday, she wasn’t able to drop by Siayan due to the heavy rains.