Trillanes claims Robredo declined meeting him to discuss Eleksyon 2022 plans

 

Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Thursday claimed that Vice President Leni Robredo had declined his invitations to discuss their plans for the 2022 national and local elections.

In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Trillanes explained why he immediately issued a statement on Wednesday after learning that Robredo had met possible 2022 presidential candidates— Senators Panfilo Lacson and Richard Gordon.

 

“Simula January, ako/Magdalo, and later on through Tindig Pilipinas, ay nagrerequest ng meeting kay VP Leni para nga masimulan na ang preparation. Subalit, AYAW NYA kaming i-meet dahil kasalanan daw sa Diyos na pag-usapan ang 2022 elections habang may pandemya,” Trillanes said.

(Starting January, I and the Magdalo group, and later on through Tindig Pilipinas, requested meetings with VP Leni to start with the preparations. However, she doesn’t want to meet us because she said it is a sin to talk about the 2022 elections while we are in the midst of a pandemic.)

Only a representative from Robredo’s camp was sent to discuss matters with him, Trillanes added.

“Meron lang siyang representative na pinapakausap sa akin. As to texting directly, for security reasons di rin ito pwedeng gawin. Tapos malalaman namin na sina Nonoy Andaya, Ping Lacson, at Gordon ay mineet nya,” he said.

(She only sent a representative to talk to me. As to texting directly, for security reasons that can't be done as well. Yet we will learn that she already met Nonoy Andaya, Ping Lacson, and Gordon.)

GMA News Online sought Robredo’s comment on Trillanes’ statement through her spokesperson Barry Gutierrez, but he has yet to respond as of posting time.

Trillanes was apparently responding to Gutierrez’s ANC interview, saying the former lawmaker should have texted Robredo to better address his concerns.

“If I may say so, Senator Trillanes’ concerns, you know, are better addressed with a text message rather than a tweet. If he had questions about kung ano anong pinag-usapan sa meeting, ibig sabihin ba nito ganito ganiyan, then he should have just reached out, ‘di ba,” Gutierrez said.

“He says he considers himself an ally. He has repeatedly said he considers the Vice President the leader of the opposition and that she should run and he will give way as president, and yet every time something like this happens, instead of reaching out to the VP or to anybody within the Liberal Party, he will immediately come up with this kind of declaration. And the declaration actually puts the Vice President already in a particular position: “She’s withdrawing and we won’t be able to support her if she does.” Come on? We’re nowhere near that,” he added.

Robredo’s spokesperson clarified that Robredo’s meetings with the senators do not mean that she already backed out from her possible presidential bid or there was an alliance formed with the involved politicians, adding that there was no political decision that was made.

Gutierrez reiterated that Robredo’s guiding principle was to start talking to people outside their “own echo chambers.”

“That’s the basic idea. If we want a strong run in 2022, if we want to have a candidate that will actually win and provide a change of direction after the 2022 elections, then we have to create the broadest possible basis of unity that we can,” he explained.

On Wednesday, Gordon and Lacson, in separate interviews, bared that they already met the Vice President to discuss election-related matters.

The meetings held with Gordon and Lacson were confirmed by Robredo’s spokesperson.

Shortly after the confirmation from Robredo’s camp, Trillanes warned the Vice President that Magdalo will not join an alliance that will support the presidential bid of Lacson.

Lacson refused to comment on Trillanes’ statement.

Recently, Lacson has confirmed that he and Senate President Vicente Sotto III would run for president and vice president respectively.

Gordon previously expressed his intent to run for president in the upcoming elections.

Meanwhile, Robredo said she is looking at the “viability” of her possible presidential run before making the decision.

 

This article Trillanes claims Robredo declined meeting him to discuss Eleksyon 2022 plans was originally published in GMA News Online.