Trillanes Hits Leni Robredo For Being ‘Nonchalant’; Warns Against Another Duterte Presidency

Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV criticized what he described as a “nonchalant” stance by Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo on the possibility of a Vice President Sara Duterte presidency in 2028.

Speaking on “Long Conversation: The View From Manila” on One News, Trillanes warned that such posture could weaken early efforts to unite the opposition.

He added that Robredo appears focused on her mayoral role and has yet to show urgency over the long-term political threat posed by a Duterte, who already announced she would vie for the presidency in 2028.

The former lawmaker stressed that Robredo must clearly declare whether she intends to run for president.

“But if she’s going to rule out any scenario that she’ll run in 2028, she has to be definitive because (Senators) Bam (Aquino) and Risa (Hontiveros) will not grow. She will have to be definitive and the fact that she isn’t definitive leads me to conclude that she is really interested,” Trillanes said.

In February, former budget secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad, a Liberal Party stalwart, said Aquino and Hontiveros are open to run for president in 2028 under the united opposition though former vice president and now Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo is still the most winnable candidate, according to her supporters.

Robredo, who was vice president from 2016 to 2022, sought the presidency but lost to president Marcos.

In the same interview, Trillanes warned of what he described as serious risks to Philippine democracy if Duterte eventually seeks the presidency, saying the public should be “very worried” about such a scenario.

Trillanes argued that another Duterte presidency could mirror or even exceed the controversies of her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte.

“We have seen Duterte part 1, Duterte 2.0 under Sara Duterte could be worse because of the temperament of Sara Duterte,” Trillanes said.

He cited concerns over leadership style and temperament, claiming these could affect governance and decision-making.

The former senator claimed that concentrating executive power under a leader with a more volatile disposition could lead to institutional strain and possible abuses of authority.

Vice President Duterte remains the most preferred candidate for president in 2028, but her gap against her predecessor Robredo has already “narrowed” in the first quarter of the year, OCTA Research group founder Ranjit Rye said last week.

Rye, in an interview with “Storycon” on One News, said they would release in the coming week the results of their preference survey for the 2028 elections.