Now trending: Dubredo, the tandem

MANILA, Philippines - Netizens have lauded the decision of President Duterte to appoint Vice President Leni Robredo as housing secretary, with supporters “loving” the political tandem called “Dubredo.”

Reacting to her appointment, Robredo said yesterday she was ready to hit the ground running and give the poor easy access to socialized shelter and reduce the housing backlog.

The hashtag #Dubredo began trending on social media site Twitter when the two met for the first time earlier this month. This was followed by #HUDCC after Duterte asked Robredo to head the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council on Thursday.

On Facebook, most of the posts about Robredo’s appointment generated thousands of likes and “love” reactions.

Hyks Gantioqui (?@hapiskull) tweeted: “Kapwa silang umiibig, hindi sa isa’t-isa kundi sa bayang sa kanila’y nananalig...NAKAKAKILIG.” He also posted a caricature of the two officials looking smitten with each other.DUBREDO Army (@DubredoArmy) posted photos of Duterte and Robredo with the caption: A guide to finding “the one” and the quote “Every girl deserves a guy who looks at her everyday like it’s the first time he saw her,” ending with a red heart.A play between the surnames of the two highest officials in the land, “Dubredo” first gained traction after images of the first meeting between the two circulated online.Robredo apparently could barely contain her happiness during the meeting, which happened during the turnover of command ceremony at the Armed Forces of the Philippines in Camp Aguinaldo on July 1.Another meeting between the two happened in Malacañang on July 4 when Robredo paid a courtesy call on the President.Asked about the photos, which have since gone viral on the Internet, the Vice President said her smile was a manifestation that her fears of being ignored by Duterte were unfounded.“My daughters were scolding me because I was laughing,” she said in Filipino in an earlier interview. “I think it manifested my happiness that my fears did not happen and the meeting exceeded expectations.”She said the meeting broke the ice between them and signaled a possible harmonious relationship.“For the country, I think we need to have a healthy working relationship. After all, we are the mother and father of the nation,” she added.Following their second meeting, Robredo brushed aside comments about their tandem being the country’s national love team.“I think we should not take that seriously,” she said. “Many were relieved because for the past month, all that have been seen and heard (about us) were our disagreements.”Duterte’s phone call to Robredo was aired by government-run People’s Television Network (PTV-4).

In the video footage, the President, using the cellphone of his special assistant Christopher Go, told Robredo: “Ma’am Leni, it is afternoon pa pala. Good afternoon. Nandito ako sa opisina ngayon. Tinatanong ako ni Rocky Ignacio (of PTV-4) sa Malacañang Press (Corps), kung bibigyan ko raw kayo ng pwesto sa Gabinete. ‘Yan ang tanong niya. Pwede kong sagutin?”

Robredo could be heard talking to the President on the other line.

“Nahihiya na ako Ma’am eh. Nakikinig ang buong Cabinet, Ma’am…Alam mo, Ma’am kasi, tinawagan kita para mahinto na itong tanong-tanong…Do not be apologetic…Pwede ka housing, Ma’am? Can you be the housing secretary? Tanggapin mo Ma’am?” Duterte said.

“Sige, Ma’am. So that will be on time with the next Cabinet meeting and even on security matters para you’d be kept abreast of what is happening to our country. Just for you to know,” the President said.

Close to her heart

In a press conference yesterday, Robredo said she was “not surprised” by Duterte’s public announcement of her appointment to the Cabinet. 

“During our meeting in Malacañang he told me that he wanted me to become part of his Cabinet,” the Vice President said.

Robredo said she was not overly concerned as to whom she would be directly reporting to as she vowed to work and address the needs of the people.

According to Robredo, “this (housing for the poor) is really an issue that is close to my heart and Jesse,” Robredo said, referring to her late husband, former mayor of Naga City and interior secretary, who died in a plane crash in 2012. 

Robredo said based on the latest report she received, there is a backlog of about 1.4 million housing units.

“That is equivalent to 1.4 million families,” she said.

Robredo said aside from the backlog, the government also targets the completion of 5.5 million more housing units. 

The Vice President added she would streamline the process of the homeless availing themselves of socialized housing programs.  

“Those who applied for the program have to go through many offices and need a lot of signatures. Let’s not make it hard for the poor to have decent homes,” she said in Filipino.

Robredo said she was set to be briefed by HUDCC officials in her office in New Manila, Quezon City yesterday afternoon.

Sen. Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, Pangasinan 2nd District Rep. Leopoldo Bataoil and Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace (NASSA) executive secretary Fr. Edu Gariguez welcomed the appointment of Robredo as HUDCC chief.

Aquino said the position was appropriate, given the “wide experience of Vice President Robredo in working with the poor, especially those who have no shelter.”

Aquino is one of the leaders of Robredo’s successful electoral campaign. Both are from the Liberal Party.

Bataoil said the appointment was a “gesture of trust and confidence of a President to his Vice President.”

Gariguez, for his part, said they were pleased with the development because “this is not about partisanship but… thinking about what is good for the whole country.”

Going around

The Vice President has been visible since she assumed office.

On Thursday, she visited Mindanao and attended various activities.

Robredo first dropped by Marawi City to personally thank her supporters there and then proceeded to Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte to talk with former members of the Moro rebel groups who turned farmers through the local government units’ arms-to-farms program.

Initiated by Kauswagan Mayor Rommel Arnado, the arms-to-farms program was designed to promote peace in Mindanao and to empower the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and Moro National Liberation Front fighters to become food producers.

In the past years, Kauswagan has been one of the areas affected by armed conflict between government troops and the Moro rebels.

In her speech, Robredo said she had long wanted to visit the town when Arnado told her about Kauswagan’s transformation from being conflict-ridden to becoming Lanao’s model for sustainable agriculture.

She said the purpose of her visit was to listen to the stories of the farmers, especially the rebel returnees.

“Their success should be an inspiration to others, (that what happened in Kauswagan) can be replicated elsewhere,” Robredo said.

Arnado said since the organic food production was initiated, the town’s poverty incidence went down from 70 percent to around 30 percent at present.

Ismael Sarip of the MILF Indirapatra Brigade said he was now reaping the fruits of his labor after he decided to avail himself of the town’s program.

At his two-hectare farm in Lininding, Lanao del Sur, Sarip planted rice, coffee and various fruits.

His three-month farm production training in Bukidnon helped him double his rice harvest from 35 to 70 sacks due to farming techniques he had acquired, Sarip said.

“When I was a rebel, I used to carry firearms. Now my weapons are my farm tools. The arms-to-farms programs has really helped me and my family,” Sarip said. With Helen Flores, Paolo Romero, Eva Visperas, Evelyn Macairan, Gerry Lee Gorit