Hugpong ng Pagbabago chairpersonĀ and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte yesterday scoffed at Vice President Leni Robredo for airing views about honesty in politics, saying that her failure to respond to reports linking her to a married man makes her unqualified to talk about the subject.
āLeni Robredo should avoid commentingĀ about honesty and integrity.Ā Her honesty has been questionedĀ since Day One of her term as Vice President,ā Duterte said in a press statement. The lady mayor added: āShe is not called fake VP for no reason.ā
Duterte was clearly irked by RobredoāsĀ comment about the mayorās bid to downplay the controversy over the alleged fake school records of Hugpong senatorial bet and IlocosĀ Norte Gov. Imee Marcos. āEverybodyĀ lies,ā commented Duterte.
In an apparent jab at the mayor, Robredo urged all candidates to be honest and tell the truth about themselves. She pointed out that lying is an insult to voters.
āShe (Robredo) has tried to copy her late husband but has failed at every turn. She is facing an electoralĀ protest for massive fraud duringĀ the 2016 elections,ā said Duterte,Ā referring to the late Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo.
The lady mayor struck hard at Robredo by touching on the widowāsĀ alleged romance to a married man. āShe has refused to answer allegations of her relationship with a married man. She may or may not get away with these but we all know she is not forthcoming in everything,āĀ stated the HNP senatorialĀ team campaign manager.
āThe reason why good moral character is not a requirement to run for Vice President is because we have so many Leni Robredos in this world,ā she stressed. Duterte added: āAnd if she insists in sayingĀ that you have to be honest to run for public office, then she must say goodbye to her dreams of becomingĀ President.ā
The exchange may have triggeredĀ an early showdown between the two lady politicians who are expected to face each other in the 2022 presidential race.
Robredo said politicians who are not honest have no business runningĀ for a public office. āKung ang premise nito sa pangangampanya ay kasinungalingan, dinadaya natinĀ ang taumbayan. Kapag sinabi mong okay na lang magsinungalingĀ ā parang insulto yata ito sa electorate,ā she said.
Turning to Marcos, Robredo, supporterĀ of the āOtso Diretsoā senatorialĀ team, said the senatorial candidate
should tell the truth about her educational background.
Otso Diretso candidates have accused Marcos of being dishonest for claiming she earned college degreeĀ and law degree at Princeton University and University of the Philippines College of Law, respectively.Ā The two schools disputed her claim. (Ben R. Rosario)