Leni Surprises With Own Campaign Color, Independent Stance; Supporters Respond With Tears, Pink Images And Heart Emojis
As of 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, there were more than 400,000 posts with the hashtag #LabanLeni2022 on Twitter alone as supporters responded to Vice President Leni Robredo’s declaration that she would run for president in 2022 with her own branding.
Her own woman.
Vice President Leni Robredo finally announced her decision for the 2022 elections on Thursday, Oct. 7. The whole package came as a surprise even to the people closest to her: she’s running for president with her own campaign color and as an independent – a sign that she’s ready to embrace not just those who are from the “yellow” side of the political fence.
This was according to Bro. Armin Luistro, convenor of the 1Sambayan multi-sectoral coalition, as Robredo made her announcement wearing a blue top with a pink ribbon pinned on her chest in the morning. As she filed her certificate of candidacy (COC) in the afternoon, Robredo declared she was running as an independent though she is the chairperson of the Liberal Party, whose color is yellow.
Luistro told “The Big Story” on One News on Thursday night that all of these were decided by the Vice President herself and everyone, including those who were closest to her, were “very surprised.”
“All of these were surprise moves, even running as an independent she kept that very close to her heart. Pink, we never thought. But who would think now that pink would be the color of hope. I think this shows you how politically savvy Vice President Leni is and how presidential she is in her judgment calls,” an ecstatic Luistro said.
It can be recalled that on Sunday, Oct. 3, Luistro became controversial as he was quoted as saying that Robredo accepted her nomination as 1Sambayan’s presidential bet. But he later clarified that the word used should have been “acknowledged” as Robredo’s camp said there was no final decision yet.
With her moves, Luistro expressed belief that Robredo has a “better chance and leverage to bring everyone together.”
Luistro cited the “great momentum” generated by Robredo’s announcement judging by how the people reacted. “You can sense very palpably how people reacted and almost spontaneously. Powerful, inspiring, and ready to fight. And I think that was the main message of the Vice President,” he noted.
There were more than 400,000 posts with the hashtag #LabanLeni2022 on Twitter alone as of 5:30 p.m. following Robredo’s announcement and filing of COC. Supporters flooded social media with pink images to express their jubilation over Robredo’s decision. They also used heart emojis to react to the posts about her on various social media platforms.
Some of the images that circulated were the following:
Many also became emotional and used the hashtags #NaiiyakAko and #LetLeniLead aside from #LabanLeni2022.
"Akala ko ako lang, apparently #NaiiyakAko is trending. Thank you for the good speech and bringing us hope, @lenirobredo,” one Twitter user posted.
“Naiiyak ako (I’m emotional) cause she knows na we’re still here for her. She knows about the petitions. She's fighting and we should all stay strong for her,” another one said.
Before the announcement, Robredo’s supporters already called on people to wear pink on Thursday to show they were behind the Vice President’s presidential run.
‘Lalaban tayo’
Robredo’s daughters Aika, Tricia and Jillian rallied behind their mother as she faces her new political battle. Celebrities openly expressed their support for the Vice President as well.
Since she was 12, Jillian, who is studying in New York, said she had been looking forward to the day where she and her sisters would have “Mama all to ourselves again,” but “I guess that would have to wait.”
“Mama, I’ve never been more proud to be your daughter. Happy I get to cast my vote for you this time around,” she added.
Aika, Robredo’s eldest daughter, quoted a part of her mother’s speech in her social media post:
“Kung hindi mo man lang kayang sabihin na mali ang mali– na kaninong panig ka ba talaga?’ Lalaban tayo. Handa ka na bang tumaya? (If you can’t even say that what is wrong is wrong – then whose side are you really on? We will fight. Are you ready to place your stake?) We are made for these times.”
Tricia, meanwhile, shared a photo of her with sisters Aika and Jillian with their mother in New York, and also captioned it with lines from Robredo’s speech.
Aika and Tricia, a medical doctor, wore pink face masks, blue tops with pink ribbons when they accompanied their mother in announcing her bid for the presidency and filing her COC with the Commission on Elections at the Harbor Garden Tent of the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila.
Actress-singer Agot Isidro wore pink lipstick to show she was behind Robredo. Other celebrities like Angel Locsin, Ria Atayde and K Brosas kept in mind the dress code in support of the Vice President.
The hashtag #Pink also became a top trending topic on Twitter as memes using the photos of K-pop groups and other foreign singers like Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé in pink to back the Vice President.
A Twitter user, April Nuñez, said she was elated that Robredo was creating her own branding and image with her color and independent stance.
There were also brands – whether a coincidence or not – that joined in on the Pink Thursday trend.
Reacting to Robredo’s joining the presidential race, Malacañang said it is within her right to seek the presidency.
“Well, it’s a right of every Filipino to run for public office,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque said at a press briefing.
Presidential aspirant and former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who lost to Robredo in the vice presidential race in 2016, said he was not surprised by her announcement.
“We expected that. It’s not surprising, because she has long been saying that if I run, she will run too,” Marcos said.
Marcos, a son and namesake of the late dictator, said having more presidential candidates would be “good for a healthy democracy.”
Another presidential candidate, Sen. Panfilo Lacson, said he and his running mate Senate President Vicente Sotto III would rather not comment on Robredo’s move.
“We will rise on our own merits,” Lacson said. “We will focus only on presenting ourselves and our competencies to the electorate in an effort to get elected based on our own strengths, and not on the deficiencies of the others,” he said. “We will raise the level of discourse of the campaign and deal with issues rather than personalities. We intend to keep it that way, even as we encourage our supporters to follow our lead.”
Light of hope
In a statement, 1Sambayan, which chose Robredo as its presidential bet, said her announcement is a “light of hope” at a time of great uncertainty.
“The fight to regain our country’s democracy and integrity in governance starts now, and it will be an uphill battle,” it said, noting the vast resources of the present administration.
“But knowing that we are fighting for the survival of the country fuels our vigilance and our resolve to push for the presidency of VP Leni in next year’s elections. We now call on every peace and democracy-loving Filipino to unite and stand behind Leni Robredo,” it added.
Volunteer groups representing different sectors also welcomed Robredo’s decision.
“We are one with VP Leni’s dream to give back to the ordinary people the ability to bring meaningful change to the country. We know the difficulties and what we lack – in power and machinery – but we will rely on a force that cannot be brought down or bought: love of country,” said Clyde Gregorio, spokesman for volunteer group Dapat Si Leni!
“We welcome with enthusiasm the acceptance of VP Leni of the historic challenge of the presidency. She walked with us, with the workers, farmers and those in the fringes of society in the past several years. We will walk with her, together, in this enormous struggle to uphold our democratic ideals, defend trade union and human rights and uplift the lives of the Filipino people,” the Alliance of Labor Leaders for Leni said in a statement.
With Robredo finally joining the presidential race, the opposition now has a genuine and formidable force against the administration’s bet, Sen. Leila de Lima said.
“Let Leni Lead. With VP Leni Robredo declaring her candidacy as President, speculations over the absence of a strong opposition candidate have come to an end,” De Lima said.
Former senator Antonio Trillianes IV said the Magdalo group is celebrating the Vice President’s decision.
“Magdalo hails VP Leni’s decision to lead the real opposition in the 2022 elections to run as President. The Magdalo will be with her to win this battle, and finally lift our country from the destruction done by Duterte,” Trillanes said.
Akbayan called Robredo’s decision a “game changer” and that it won’t be hard for voters to choose the “real democratic alternative” come election time.
Labor groups belonging to the Federation of Free Workers also voiced support for Robredo’s presidential bid.
Former senator Bam Aquino announced on Twitter that he would no longer seek a return to the Senate and instead focus on being Robredo's campaign manager for the 2022 polls. – With Janvic Mateo, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Ralph Edwin Villanueva, Robertzon Ramirez, Alexis Romero
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