March is approaching and still no standout Opposition leader. The 2022 national elections are looming in the horizon and the only person being put forth as a “viable” challenger to the administration camp of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is “vice president” Leni Robredo — that is, for those who see the Liberal Party (a.k.a. the Yellowtards) as representative or even leaders of the broader Opposition. But is Robredo really up to the task?
This is the latest “report” on Robredo’s personal position on the matter of Opposition leadership.
“If I run for president, I need to be really ready — ready not only for the job but for the fight, and that’s where the problem is,” she said in Filipino in an interview with GMA News in Naga City, Camarines Sur, when asked for a reaction to calls for her to run for the highest government post.
“As in all my other elections, I’m open to all possibilities. I’m okay with everything — with various positions,” she added.
Later on, she said that she would be much “happier” in local office where she would have “direct contact” with people.
“So very, very honestly, if I had a choice, I would prefer a local position,” she said.
From the above, it is easy to see why Robredo consistently fails to hit the mark on “leadership”.
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For one thing, this most recent of Robredo’s ululations clearly exhibits the hollowness of her national leader rhetoric (or at least the script fed to her by her handlers). If she truly has a strong vision for the Philippines which she is presumably resolved to see through, why then is she expressing a preference for a local position? To be a leader of nations, one is expected to see nothing less than the top spot as a means to execute a strategy to achieve this vision. To change, reform, and make nations great, one needs to be a national leader. One cannot do any of that — certainly not the stuff expected of her by her own followers and supporters — if she apires to be no more than a town mayor.
“I am open to all possibilities” is such a lame cop-out. It is something said by a mere cork bobing on rough waters content to end up wherever the current takes it. That is not a leader. Leaders know what they want and know what it takes — the resources and steps required — to get it. Leaders take people for the ride and pull them along the journey they map out. Robredo is doing it the other way around. She is waiting for people to push her along and tell her what she does next. Robredo’s claim to national leadership is a dishonest one — because she clearly has no intention of leading.
Therefore, a political party that tries to drum up support — and funding — for a lame politician like Leni Robredo is, by association, a dishonest one. It is evident that all the Liberal Party really want out of Robredo is for her to open the door for the LP mafia to walk through. Robredo’s supporters cry “Let Leni Lead”. Ironic, because it seems there is no intent on the part of Robredo’s own party to let her lead.
What is laughable about the LP “strategy” to put up Robredo as their ticket to the 2022 race is that it has long been evident that she is not even winnable. The most recent popularity poll shows Robredo languishing at a 57 percent rating and she continues to trail way behind other strong politicians who rate in the mid to high 70s and 80s. What is the LP winning strategy then seeing that there is no way they will ever seize power legally again? Another “people power revolution”? Quite disturbing when one recalls how Senator and LP President Kiko Pangilinan routinely suggests that Filipinos break the law by ousting Duterte through “people power”. Coming from no less than a Philippine Senator, this sort of public incitement is nothing short of criminal.
It is increasingly clear that the broader Philippine Opposition is in deepening trouble as time runs out and their pitch to the Filipino people is nowhere near as compelling as it needs to be considering who and what they are up against. The stubborn loyalty to the LP and the losing proposition they put up to their lot — “vice president” Leni Robredo, who aspires to nothing more than a “local position” — is setting them up for catastrophic failure in 2022. Filipinos deserve a better and more intelligent Opposition than this.
benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.com.
Lugaw Robredo, flunked her Law Bar Exams, 3 times…she did not even practice law. She is used as a “political decoration” by the Aquino Cojuangco political axis. The performance of the opposition, in the last 2016 election was very very poor.
Not even one of their candidates, won…so they are trying to do any “peoples’ power”, to grab power…like the EDSA.
They cannot win in any fair and honest election…all they do, is to grab power, and call it: “Peoples’ Power’…
Who profited from the EDSA Peoples’ power ? It was the crooks; the political opportunists; the Aquino Cojuangco political axis; and all kinds of crooks, and all sort of shady characters …they became as rich as they wanted to be; while we all remain poor !
The Aquino Cojuangco political axis era , is gone already…the 2016 election proved this era is already gone…It was like the Marcos era, or any other political era in our country…
The Aquinos and the Cojuangcos; Mar Roxas and Porky Drilon, and other Yellowtards…are no longer politically relevant !
This parable probably sums up Lowly-minded Leni’s life story…
The crocodile swimming pool story – a small push can make a difference in your life…
Well the reluctant widow story did sell well back in the day; so it could be Leni’s doing a Cory act to get sympathy points. Although if history is really meant to repeat itself, the prevailing build-demolish cycle seems to go this way…
Marcos (visionary) -> Cory (visionless) -> Ramos (visionary) -> Erap (visionless) -> Gloria (visionary) -> PNoy (visionless) -> Duterte (visionary) -> ???
Looks like Leni fits the bill for the country’s next leader – unfortunately.
What the hell happened to this site?? I used to come here a lot because of the biting and real criticisms of Filipinos and Philippine society. It was good to know that other people, whether they were filipino or not, shared my views regarding the country and the hilarious stupidity of the ppl. However, ever since Duterte became president, most of the articles here are either criticizing the other camp, or passively supporting his stupid actions. At some point you have to admit that Duterte and his people are the exact examples of the dump filipinos that this site used to criticize.
It’s because “that other camp” embodies all the stupidity of Filipinos that we traditionally highlighted here. Those articles and points of view still exist and we often reference them when calling out the hypocrisy and dishonesty of the Yellowtards and communists. So you see, we remain consistent with our thesis about Filipino culture.
Huh?? The other camp embodies the stupidity? And the duterte camp doesn’t? Also, you use it when calling out the camp that is “not in charge”??? What even is the point of doing that? Anyway, Its your site so..ok. Was just wondering what happend to the “enlightened” (couldn’t find a better word) filipinos here.
I’ve got only so much time in a day so I follow the 80/20 rule. Between two stupid camps working within an overall stupid society, I need to prioritise my limited writing bandwidth.
Of all the candidates running, I dread this woman the most. Forget corruption, I am simply anti incompetence which to me represents much of the LP party “leadership”. I mean, even incompetence is correlated to corruption itself. She’s more like Cory Aquino, Mar Roxas, Noynoy…everything about this party just stinks incompetence of the highest levels. I don’t even know the hell her key promises or proposals are for the benefit of the country, just like the farking Joe Biden presidency. I would vote anyone one of the other running candidates just to get her away from reaching the next presidency.