Leni says Bongbong's rumored DILG post is 'scary'

MANILA, Philippines — Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. becoming the Interior secretary is a scary prospect, Vice President Leni Robredo said.

In an interview with ANC aired on Friday, Robredo was reacting to unconfirmed reports that President Rodrigo Duterte is planning to appoint Marcos, the son and namesake of the late dictator, to the Department of Interior and Local Government.

"For me that's scary, in the sense that he will be given another opportunity to do what they did before," Leni said in the February 15 interview.

For Robredo, the Marcos family should first pay reparation for atrocities and corruption during the Marcos patriarch's 21-year government and martial rule.

She also said that several court decisions have been passed, demanding the Marcos clan to "pay back whatever they got from the government, whatever they got from the people."

"My concern here is that the Marcoses have not paid for what they did to the country," Robredo added.

Robredo claimed that talks for Marcos to replace current Interior Secretary Ismael Sueno started following the inauguration rites of winning candidates in July last year. Marcos, however, is not allowed to take any post one year after the polls, according to election rules.

Malacañang, however, is yet to confirm the rumors of Marcos's appointment. Sueno, meanwhile, said he is not privy to any talks with Marcos and that work at the DILG has been "business as usual."

The interview with Robredo was a day before the Supreme Court, acting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, accepted electoral complaint lodged by Marcos challenging Robredo's victory.

In May last year, Robredo won by a slim margin of 263,473 over Marcos, who was leading in pre-election polls in the first months of the campaign before Robredo started taking over the race.

READ: Solon: Bongbong must withdraw protest vs Leni if he accepts rumored DILG appointment