After blaming Robredo for withdrawal calls, Moreno now decries 'bullying' by VP supporters
MANILA, Philippines — After first pointing the finger at Vice President Leni Robredo and her spokesperson, Aksyon Demokratiko standard-bearer Isko Moreno Domagoso turned on their supporters and claimed that he had long been at the receiving end of "incessant bashing and calls for withdrawal" as he claimed he was up against "elitist politics that have lorded over the land for so long."
This comes as the latest in a long saga after Moreno and other male presidential candidates lagging behind in the surveys held a joint press conference to urge Robredo, the only female candidate standing in second place, to withdraw.
The 47-year-old presidential aspirant asked for understanding "if he had been overly emotional" in the past few days.
“I don't know what caused my emotions to flare up...the bullying of the yellow-pinks is too much. Too out of place. They act like they are higher than us,” Moreno said in Filipino before supporters at the Bagumbayan Covered Court in Teresa, Rizal.
“Let's end the long fight of red and yellow. If you have experienced bullying, if you have experienced hurtful words from those in power, come with me, we will fight them,” Moreno said as he again pushed the false claim that politics in the Philippines since 1986 has been a conflict between two families colors. The past six presidents actually came from four different political parties.
Moreno claimed to be acting out of sympathy for regular people, saying he had "suffered oppression from the self-proclaimed cream of society." He went on to highlight his upbringing and experiences in poverty, saying he understood the people because he too "came from nothing."
“Please be patient with me. If you watch me in the interviews, you should feel my emotions. Because I know how it feels to be belittled," he said in Filipino.
The Manila city mayor said, "it is this unending oppression from a handful of vested politicians that egged him to seek the presidency in order to give the ordinary people like him the equal opportunity to better their lives."
“If you want peace of mind, and a calm life with no fighting, I am available. Let us make all Filipinos equal. No poor, no middle class, no rich. Everyone has equal opportunity, everyone is equal,” Moreno said.
The town hall meeting in Teresa capped a short but very fruitful sortie in Rizal province where the Aksyon Demokratiko presidential candidate paid courtesy calls to Angono Mayor Jeri Mae Calderon, Tanay Mayor Rex Manuel Tanjuatco and Teresa Mayor Raul Palino.
Robredo's camp has denied that calls for the Manila City mayor to withdraw from the presidential race came from the Vice President herself.
In response to this denial, Moreno told lawyer Barry Guttierez, Robredo's spokesperson, to stop speaking for Robredo.
Moreno panned for homophobic comments
In an interview aired over ABS-CBN News Channel, Rey Valmores, chairperson of Bahaghari said that Moreno should focus on addressing discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community instead of adding to it.
"It's dehumanizing to stereotype the LGBT community as solely sex-hungry and looking for bookings. That's just not true," she said.
"These kinds of jokes are not merely jokes for people like him who have a huge influence. These statements fuel the cycle of violence that the LGBT community faces to reduce us."
To recall, Moreno at a concert rally in Butuan City on April 19 jokingly told the crowd that he would "gift" the LGBT community his son Joaquin, an actor, free of charge.
"Libre ang bookin pero tikim lang, ‘wag kakainin! (Booking is free but it's just a taste, no eating)," he quipped.
"This is not a laughing matter and this is not something that should be joked about by someone who is running for president," Valmores said.
On Thursday, Kaye Legaspi, Aksyon Demokratiko's vice president for youth also expressed disappointment with the party's standard-bearer over the recent joint press conference, which she called "very unbecoming of a public servant and a gentleman."
"Mayor Isko is in self-destruct mode. He divides all of us. If he can't lead the party being our standard-bearer, what more the entire country?" she said. "Mayor Isko has truly damaged the values of the party."
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