Doctors for Leni or RobreDocs know the assignment well: the coronavirus pandemic was an indication that the country needs a leader in 2022 who “listens to scientific experts.”
Dr. Winlove Mojica, an active member of RobreDocs and clinical associate professor of the Philippine General Hospital-Department of Dermatology, said that their group already has about 11,000 members.
Calling the 2022 polls “the fight of our lives,” the doctor said it is not embarrassing to support Robredo because she has the qualities that they are looking for in a leader.
This is the first time in the country’s political history that such a large group of physicians stood up to rally support behind a political personality.
Mojica, during a guesting on presidential aspirant Vice President Leni Robredo’s weekly radio show, said this was because in medical school, they were taught to “always be in the middle, always listen but never take a stance.”
“So ngayon po, nag-decide itong mga Doctors for Leni na ayaw na naming mag (now, we decided this Doctors for Leni, we no longer want to be) fence-sitter...Pero ngayon po mas marami nang nakakaalam (But now many already know) that health is political,” he said, adding that many more of their peers in the health care sector will suffer if they remain silent.
“So kaya po kami nag-decide na kailangan pong sumuporta tayo sa isang kandidato na nakikinig sa (that’s why we decided that we need to support a candidate who listens to) science, sa (to) healthcare workers,” Mojica stressed.
He mentioned a personal story wherein Robredo messaged him immediately after reading his tweet about antigen testing.
Mojica on March 28 this year replied to Robredo’s tweet about not using antigen testing on asymptomatic COVID-19 patients because this gives a “false sense of security.”
Robredo, he said, immediately reached out to him and his group, the Healthcare Professionals Alliance Against COVID-19 (HPAAC).
“Ikaw ang pinipili ng mga doktor ng Pilipinas para mamuno sa susunod na ano, para manalo sa susunod na eleksyon (The doctors of the Philippines are choosing you to be the next leader, to win in the next elections),” he told the aspiring president who is hosting the radio show.
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Robredo, for her part, mentioned that there is a group of doctors who would welcome her in every town, city, and province she visited as of late.
She mentioned that a doctor even messaged her about giving out flyers to patients. She also saw some posts on social media about medical missions, stickers posted on clinics, and prescription pads with her name on them.
The presidential aspirant is no stranger to the health care sector since her daughter, Tricia, is a doctor, and most of their relatives in her husband’s, the late former Interior secretary Jesse Robredo, side are doctors.
It is “unusual” for them to be vocal about their political standings, she added.
Mojica agreed but said that the pandemic was very personal for a lot of physicians, because they were at the frontlines and the ones most affected.
And though he recognized that the government tried to help the sector, Mojica found it lacking.
Aside from listening to health experts, Robredo also provided personal protective equipment (PPE) during the height of the pandemic by tapping local seamstresses. She also made provisions for free dormitories, hot meals, and shuttle buses when public transportation was halted during the lockdowns.
READ: Robredo meets with doctors, hospital execs in CamSur for COVID-19 response
She was also behind initiatives such as the Swab Cab, Vaccine Express, and Bayanihan E-Konsulta, all of which were powered by volunteer doctors.