Philippines
Robredo won't be a vindictive president if she wins, but will 'stick to the law'
Robredo won't be a vindictive president if she wins, but will 'stick to the law'
Vice President and opposition leader Leni Robredo will not take revenge on anyone if and when she’s elected as the country’s next president in the upcoming May 9 polls.
Instead, Robredo said that she would be a "unifying" leader. She noted that she's already taking steps to achieve that goal.
The Vice President said she won’t seek revenge on anyone because it is a “waste of political capital.” However, she also reiterated that she will follow the rule of law in punishing those who committed wrongdoings.
“Ngayon pa lang na tumatakbo kami nandun na kami sa pagyu-unify (Even now that I’m running, we’re already trying to unify) with people who believe differently from us,” Robredo, who is a known critic of President Duterte and pill frontrunner former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said.
The Vice President was a guest on Rated Korina’s “Upuan ng Katotohanan: The 2022 Presidential Special”, which was aired on Saturday, Feb. 5.
Asked if she’s going to put former First Lady Imelda Marcos, the wife of the former dictator Ferdinand Marcos, in jail, Robredo said she will stick to the rule of law.
“Parati sa akin rule of law (It is always the rule of law for me). Whether si (it’s) Imelda Marcos iyan o kung sino pa man na tao kung ano iyong sinasabi ng batas kailangan sundin (or whoever that person is, whatever the law says, we should follow it),” she explained.
READ: Robredo explains why she is angry at Marcos
The Marcos matriarch was convicted in 2018 by the Sandiganbayan’s fifth division on seven counts of graft and was sentenced to jail for six to 11 years for each count, totaling to at least 42 years of imprisonment. She remains free because of her advanced age.
For Robredo, her poll rival Marcos Jr. is accountable for his family’s ill-gotten wealth.
“Kung ang anak nakikinabang sa kasalanan ng ama (If the son benefits from the sins of the father), he’s as guilty, di ba? Ang (right? The) issue kay Marcos iyong (with Marcos is the) corruption, iyong (the) hidden wealth, iyong pagnanakaw (the stealing). Kapag ikaw nakikinabang sa (If you are benefiting from the) very act na hinuhusgahan iyong tatay mo kailangan ka din husgahan (that your father is being judged for, you need to be judged, too),” she said.
The former senator, she added, doesn’t need to admit to any crime because the courts “decided already with finality” on the veracity of the cases lodged against the Marcoses.