Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson on Monday, August 9, said he blocked around 200 troll accounts who attacked and insulted him on social media following his meeting with Vice President Leni Robredo.
In an interview with ABS-CBN's Teleradyo, Lacson said he started getting insults after Robredo rejected his proposition to unify candidates against administration bets in the 2022 elections.
"'Yong mga supporters nila, supporters namin, nagkakapikunan na sa social media platform at binabanatan ako. Alam mo, kahapon nga, siguro mga 200 yata 'yong nablock ko, na obvious namang trolls (Their supporters and ours have been clashing on social media and are attacking me. You know, just yesterday, I blocked around 200 accounts that were obviously trolls)," Lacson disclosed.
"Kasi...impertinent, tapos insulto, na wala na halos kinalaman na doon sa aming topic, sa issue at hand (They were impertinent, and were just hurling insults that were beyond the topic, the issue at hand)," he added.
"So bakit aaksayiin ko pa ang araw ko, sisirain ko pa yong araw ko, ang ginagawa ko bina-block ko na lang (So why would I waste or ruin my day because of them, I would just block them)," said the senator.
"Kami namang dalawa ni VP Leni maayos naman 'yong aming naging usapan. Hanggang ngayon, sinasabi ko nirerespeto ko siya (The discussion between VP Leni and I had been okay. Until now, I say that I respect her)," he pointed out.
Lacson, however, admitted that he was "quite disappointed" when Robredo rejected his "unification formula" during their meeting last July 21.
"I was quite disappointed that nipped in the bud, so to speak. Sana man lang, ang ineexpect kong sagot ni Vice President Leni, 'Sige pag-usapan natin yan at mag-konsulta ako sa mga supporters' -- para may opening (I was expecting Vice President Leni to at, least, say that, 'Okay, let's talk about it and I will consult my supporters' -- so there is still an opening)," Lacson shared.
"Pero outright ang sinabi niya 'Hindi pwede yan' or may resistance kaagad, parang ayaw ko nang i-pursue (But she resisted it outright, and it kind of discouraged me)," he added.
He clarified that what he raised was only a suggestion, and that he was open to tweaking it.
"Pinangunahan ko pa nga, sabi ko, 'Top of the head lang ito, Ma'am. Hindi parang solido'. Ibig sabihin no'n pwede pang may variation ito, pag-usapan (I told her beforehand that 'Ma'am, this suggestion was only at the top of head. And is not solid'. This meant that there could be variations, and we could talk about it further)," he said.
Still, he believed that his proposal was "practical", saying the opposition is already pressed for time in looking for single standard bearer to nominate for the elections.
Lacson had suggested that all candidates for presidency file their candidacies in October and withdraw later in favor of the strongest contender. He also proposed to Robredo that his running mate, Senate President Vicente Sotto III, be their "common" vice presidential candidate.
Sotto, in a separate statement, surmised that Robredo may have "something else in mind" when she rejected Lacson's advice.
Both Lacson and Sotto were determined to run for presidency and vice presidency, respectively.