BY RAYMUND F. ANTONIO
Vice President Leni Robredo is ready at all times to take over as the country’s top leader if anything happens to President Duterte.
Robredo said during her interview on GMA‘s “Quarantined with Howie Severino” she has prepared herself as constitutional successor of President Duterte when the need arises.
“I’ve been ready since I was elected Vice President. And the last four years, I made sure that I’ve been studying. We don’t want any eventuality to happen, but that’s my obligation if something happens,” she said.
The vice president shared she has met with experts to give her weekly briefings about different subject matters even before the occurrence of the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s a huge part of my responsibility to equip myself with the capacity and the needed skills and the information,” Robredo said.
“I think it’s my obligation to study hard because it’s my work. I can’t say, ‘I’m not ready because I only prepared for being a VP,’” she added.
Duterte’s state of health has been a recurring issue in his presidency given his old age.
There have been questions surrounding his health after rumors circulated on social media he was supposedly airlifted to Singapore for medical emergency last month.
While Duterte and his close allies denied this, the President then publicly admitted
his Barrett’s esophagus was “nearing stage one cancer.”
The 1987 Constitution says the vice president — in the case of Robredo — shall serve the remaining days of a president’s term “in case of death, permanent disability, removal from office, or resignation.” (Raymund Antonio)
