Leni Still Open To Running For President; Trillanes Seeks 1Sambayan Endorsement

With less than a year before the 2022 elections, Vice President Leni Robredo remains open to running for president and has not made preparations to run for governor, her spokesperson said on Wednesday, May 12.

Lawyer Barry Gutierrez denied the claim of former senator Antonio Trillanes IV that the Vice President is “preparing” to run for governor of Camarines Sur.

“As VP Leni has repeatedly stated, her focus remains on helping our fellow Filipinos through the COVID-19 crisis. She has not made a decision regarding the 2022 elections, and there is absolutely no truth to the claim that she is making ‘preparations’ to run for governor of Camarines Sur,” Gutierrez said.

“This is not a time for politicking, but for working for the people’s welfare. She remains open to all options, including a possible candidacy for President, and at the appropriate time, she will personally convey her decision on this matter,” he added.

Robredo served as representative of the third district of Camarines Sur for one term prior to her election as Vice President in 2016.

Earlier on Wednesday, Trillanes announced that he is seeking to be the standard bearer of the opposition in next year’s polls.

“In view of VP Leni's preparations to run for Governor of Camarines Sur in 2022, I, together with the Magdalo group, have decided to convey to the 1Sambayan Coalition to change my status from being an alternate candidate (to VP Leni) to being a principal candidate for President) to vie for the Coalition's nomination,” he said in a statement.

Led by former Supreme Court senior associate justice Antonio Carpio and other former government officials, 1Sambayan is a coalition of various groups that seeks to select a unified opposition slate for next year’s polls.

It earlier said that Robredo and Trillanes are among the potential bets that they have started talking to.

Read More: Unified Opposition Slate Eyed For 2022: Leni, Grace, Isko, Nancy Among Possible Bets

On Twitter, Liberal Party vice president for internal affairs and former Ifugao representative Teddy Baguilat said Trillanes’ statement may have been misinterpreted or mistakenly expressed.

“VP Leni is still interested in running for (president). Why are we working 24/7 organizing the machinery if not to prepare for that? Maybe (Senator) Trillanes just wanted to make sure that there is an alternative,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino.

“VP Leni I repeat has not changed her position and is still open to a 2022 presidential run. Every week, we establish chapters preparing for 2022. Every week, we talk with Magdalo they know what is the position of Ma’am Leni. We continue to work for a united front,” he added.

Trillanes explained his move is necessary for his name to be included in the opposition coalition’s selection process.

“Just to be clear, I am not dividing the opposition as there will be only one unified slate to be nominated by 1Sambayan, and both VP Leni and myself have committed to support and campaign for its nominees,” he stressed.

In the event that Robredo decides to run for president before the coalition picks its nominees in July, the former senator said would “wholeheartedly step aside” and withdraw his bid in her favor.

Until that happens, he said he would work on the assumption that Robredo would run for governor and therefore start preparations on drafting policies such as pandemic response; economic recovery and poverty alleviation; peace and order; security sector reforms; anti-corruption and governance reforms; and foreign policy, including the West Philippine Sea (WPS) issue.

“As I often stressed, the 2022 elections would be the most important elections in our nation's history after 1986. Not only our democracy is at stake, our very survival as a country is at stake, too,” Trillanes said.

“In just five years, Duterte has been able to destroy our institutions, bankrupted the economy, worsened poverty and corruption, surrendered our interests in the WPS, and promoted incompetence in public service. Worst of all, he made our people accept killings, immorality, indecency and vulgarity as the new societal norm. Truly, we will not survive another six years of a Duterte rule,” he added.

Robredo lags behind some other potential candidates for president, a recent survey by Pulse Asia showed.

Pulse Asia’s Ulat sa Bayan survey conducted last Feb. 22 to March showed the Vice President at sixth spot, after Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., Sen. Grace Poe, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno and Sen. Manny Pacquiao.

Trillanes, meanwhile, placed at 27th to 30th spot among potential candidates for senator next year. He is not among those in the list of preferred presidential bets.