It’s not often that you will see Vice President Leni Robredo having fun since she’s been busy the past year attending to her office’s COVID-19 response, but a lighthearted “Fast Talk” on Teleradyo’s Kapamilya Konek gives everyone a glimpse into the personal life of the country’s second-highest official.
ABS-CBN Foundation Managing Director Roberta Lopez-Feliciano asked Robredo about her personal and family life in a series of 10 questions that found out that she’s truly a fan of lugaw (rice porridge), which has been used to mock her during her five years in office.
During the Fast Talk, which was popularized by celebrity host Boy Abunda, it showed that Robredo is more than a vice president. Like many, she’s an ordinary Filipino who enjoys cooking when she has time and has a huge crush on local celebrity Piolo Pascual.
Asked between pancit or spaghetti, Robredo said she preferred to have pancit while choosing both pares (braised beef stew) and lugaw when asked to pick between the two.
“Ay, pares or lugaw? Mahirap pumili! Iyon, ano iyon, mahilig ako sa pares pero mahilig din ako sa lugaw, eh. So baka quits iyon (Oh, pares or lugaw? It’s hard to choose. I like pares, but I like lugaw, too. So, they’re just quits for me),” she said.
Lopez-Feliciano joked that her choice was more essential, making the vice president laugh. Robredo has been the subject of ridicule by internet trolls, who refer to her as “Lugaw Queen” because her supporters sold rice porridge to raise funds for her 2016 vice presidential campaign.
Between tea and coffee, the vice president chose tea. Asked to pick between pants or skirt, she said she’s more of a pants person though she wears shorts at home.
She also chose cooking rather than sleeping, but she’s more into cooking savory dishes than baking. Robredo said she and her eldest daughter, Aika, love to cook while her two other daughters, Tricia and Jillian, prefer to bake.
Though she’s been very vocal about her love for Korean dramas and actors, the lady official revealed that her local celebrity crush “for a very long time” has been former ABS-CBN talent Piolo Pascual.
Robredo also shared her favorite books, the latest of which is Tyranny of Merit that she’s currently reading. The others are the books of Nancy Pelosi and Ruth Baden Ginsberg.
Has she ever wondered what she will be if she did not join politics? Robredo has an answer for that.
“Most probably, baka judge na ako ngayon (I am a judge now). I was a practicing lawyer for a very long time but when my husband died, I applied sa (to the) Judiciary and pipirmahan na iyong appointment ko (and they’re going to sign my appointment). I had an assigned courtroom already pero bigla akong natulak na kumandidato (but I was pushed to run),” she said.
At the end of the Fast Talk, Robredo was asked if she will “walk or run,” alluding to her political plans.
Laughing, Robredo said she’s more of a walker. Aside from it being a “very relaxing activity,” she believes in “the Power of the Long Game.”
“You don’t have to rush so many things because sometimes the beauty and meaning of things are found when you give it time and attention . . . parang (it’s like) it gives you the assurance that things will turn out best in the end,” she explained.
Robredo remains mum about her political plans next year, stressing that she’s focused on her COVID-19 response and that there will be a better time to talk about politics.