Vice President Leni Robredo is still holding out hope that she could have a simultaneous meeting with fellow administration critics Manila Mayor Francisco "Isko Moreno" Domagoso and Senator Manny Pacquiao before Oct. 8.
"Mayroong plano. Mayroong plano pero hindi pa siya natutuloy (There is a plan. There is a plan but it has not come to fruition yet)," Robredo told reporters in a chance interview Friday, Sept. 17 during the launch of the Vaccine Express program in San Fernando, Pampanga.
"Tuloy-tuloy pa rin iyong effort na magkaroon ng, sana unity ticket before Oct. 8 (We continue the effort to come up with a unity ticket, hopefully before Oct. 8)," the opposition leader said.
That day is the deadline for the filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) for the May 2022 national elections. However, announcements for the candidacies of those running for national positions like the presidency and vice presidency are expected to occur before this.
Robredo, 56, the Liberal Party (LP) chairman, is being persuaded to run for the Palace seat by various groups all over the country.
However, Domagoso and Pacquiao--both rumored to have presidential aspirations--have been beating her in the surveys.
If anything, the lady official had earlier said that having low ratings doesn't intimidate her from running for public office.
Reports said that Robredo has already met with the mayor and the senator separately.
"Ayaw ko rin na parang i-preempt. Ayaw kong i-preempt iyong detalye ng mga pinagmi-mitingan kasi ayaw ko rin na iyon pa tuloy iyong maging dahilan para hindi matuloy iyong mga usapan (I don't like to sort of preempt it. I don't want to preempt the details of what we will be meeting on and have them become the reason for the discussion to not push through)," she stressed.
She said the challenge in setting up such meeting is rooted in the fact that they belong to different political factions. But she still hopes that everyone will end up acting for the best interest of the country.
"Pero sa akin, iyong hope ko lang ngayon na sana lahat kami magde-decide hindi to protect ourselves, hindi to protect our groups, pero kung ano iyong pinaka best formula para sa bayan natin (For me, my hope is that we all decide not for the purpose of protecting ourselves or our groups, but to arrive at what is the best formula for our nation)," she said.