Robredo denies criticism was politicking

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo disputed yesterday Malacañang’s claim that her criticisms against the government’s handling of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic were merely for political mileage.

“I have a platform to call them out and I’ll do that because the people are the ones who will benefit. I have no interest in politicking,” Robredo said in her weekly radio program over dzXL.

The Vice President made the statement in reaction to presidential spokesman Harry Roque’s claim that she is nitpicking to criticize the government’s efforts to address the COVID-19 crisis.

However, she agreed with Roque’s statement that she opted to look at the administration’s response to the pandemic as a glass half-empty.

“This is the time when we can’t afford to commit mistakes, because every mistake we make there are lives that are at stake, not just those who get COVID-19 but also the frontliners and those families who experience hunger because we fail to immediately find solutions to the problem,” Robredo said.

“It’s true that I look at the glass half-empty and we try in our office to fill it during this time of crisis...I always say that this is not the time for politicking, even if we are accused of doing so. It’s just now that I aired my voice since March,” she added.

In an interview last week, Robredo said the Duterte administration was “complacent” at the start and “did not act urgently” to contain the virus.

She said the government also has “missed” many of its targets to stop the spread of the disease in the country.