ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Trillanes explains his choice of Hontiveros over Robredo for 2028 Palace race

Trillanes explains his choice of Hontiveros over Robredo for 2028 Palace race

Published Apr 22, 2026 09:12 pm

At A Glance

  • Former senator Antonio "Sonny" Trillanes IV shared to House of Representatives reporters on Wednesday, April 22 what he believed was the key difference bettwen Senator Risa Hontiveros and another prospective alternative opposition standard-bearer, Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo.
Former senator Antonio "Sonny" Trillanes IV (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)
Former senator Antonio "Sonny" Trillanes IV (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)



Former senator Antonio "Sonny" Trillanes IV shared to House of Representatives reporters on Wednesday, April 22 what he believed was the key difference bettwen Senator Risa Hontiveros and another prospective alternative opposition standard-bearer, Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo.
"Yung grupo namin, yung Magdalo, nakilatis na namin yung mga prospective [candidates](Our group, Magdalo, has already examined the prospective candidates)," the retired Navy lieutenant said after attending a House Committee on Justice hearing.
The hearing was on the determination of probable cause in the two active impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte--so far the lone personality who have declared any intention to run for the Palace seat in the 2028 elections.
"Ngayon, ang nais naming itulak sa pagpa-presidente ay si Senator Risa Hontiveros. So nasa sa kanya yung kuwalipikasyon at talagang tumitindig, lumalaban. Kumbaga ipaglalaban ka ni Senator Risa," Trillanes said matter-of-factly.
(Now, the one we want to push for the presidency is Senator Risa Hontiveros. She has the qualifications and truly stands firm, fights. In other words, Senator Risa will fight for you.)
He then mentioned Hontiveros' supposed "advantage" over Roberto, a former vice president.
"Yun nga ang comparison kay Mayor Leni. Both of them are good public servants. Pero ang kaibahan nila, si Mayor Leni, ipaglalaban mo eh. Pero si Senator Risa, ipaglalaban ka," he said.
(That’s the comparison with Mayor Leni. Both of them are good public servants. But the difference is, with Mayor Leni, you will fight for her. With Senator Risa, she will fight for you.)
Asked if Hontiveros was on board with Magdalo's endorsement, Trillanes said: "Tuloy tuloy kaming nag-uusap [ni Senator Risa] (Our talks with the Senator Risa are continuing.)"
Robredo ran for president in 2022, but ended up as a far second to eventual winner, President Marcos.
Trillanes suggested that Robredo explicitly declare her backing for an alternative opposition bet if she truly decided not to run herself. This will give a higher chance for that candidate to win, he said.
"Syempre, mas maganda nito...ni Mayor Leni, kung ayaw na niyang tumakbo, i-endorso na lang niya either si Senator Bam [Aquino] or si Senator Risa. Para talagang malipat sa kanila yung suporta ni Mayor Leni."
Senator Risa Hontiveros (left), Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo (Facebook)
Senator Risa Hontiveros (left), Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo (Facebook)
(Of course, it would be better if Mayor Leni, should she decide not to run, would endorse either Senator Bam Aquino or Senator Risa. That way, the support for Mayor Leni would truly be transferred to them.)
Despite facing an impeachment trial, Vice President Duterte--an administration critic--remains a strong candidate in 2028, if her popularity figure are any indication.

Related Tags

Antonio Trillanes Leni Robredo Sara Duterte 2028 elections Risa Hontiveros Bam Aquino Impeachment
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.