Vice President Sara Duterte wasn’t the only one who paid a courtesy call to former vice president Leni Robredo in Naga City as Marcos allies Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos and Senator Bong Revilla were seen meeting the ex-official on Saturday, Sept. 21.
Former vice president Leni Robredo welcomes Senator Bong Revilla and Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos in Naga City on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (Contributed photo)
In a media interview, the former vice president said that the feast of Our Lady of Peñafrancia is “politically neutral.”
“Pag Peñafrancia dito sa amin, wala naman kulay ng pulitikang tinitingnan. Walang partido, politically neutral dito lahat, lahat ng pumupunta para kay Ina ay welcome dito sa amin (When it is Peñafrancia here, there is no political color. There is no party, everyone is politically neutral, everyone who goes to Ina is welcome here),” she said.
Robredo shared that it had always been this ways since her husband, the late former Interior secretary Jesse Robredo, became mayor of Naga City in 1988.
The late Naga City mayor held the position for almost two decades before being appointed to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) by the late former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino.
“Mula nung naging mayor ang asawa nung 1988, every time na may bisita ang Naga na si Ina ang sadya, very much welcome dito sa amin (Ever since my husband became mayor in 1988, every time someone visits Naga and Ina is their purpose, they are very much welcome here),” she added.
A photo of Robredo was also shown with Revilla in her house, while Abalos granted an interview with reporters.
Stressing that “faith is very important,” the DILG secretary said there was no politics involved in his pilgrimage to the Our Lady of Peñafrancia and that his family “has been very religious ever since.”
“Dumaan na tayo for courtesy call kay VP Leni (We did a courtesy call to VP Leni),” he shared.
The feast of Our Lady of Peñafrancia, which draws Filipinos from all over the country, made waves on Friday, Sept. 20, after it was reported that Duterte visited Robredo in her house.
Robredo’s allies came to her defense against criticisms of the supposed meeting with the Vice President, saying that she was courteous enough to open her doors to everyone, including political foes.
The visit, former Robredo spokesman Barry Gutierrez said, lasted only for a minute, with the talk purely personal and not political.