MANILA, Philippines — (UPDATE) The Office of the Vice President has confirmed a report that Vice President Sara Duterte met with her predecessor, Maria Leonor Robredo, during the Peñafrancia Festival in Naga City on Friday but a spokesman for Robredo described the meeting as “personal.”
The report by an online news website claimed that Duterte met with Robredo to seek her support amid challenges in her office.
In a statement issued on Friday night, the OVP said that Duterte was “excited to experience her first ever Peñafrancia Festival,” upon the invitation of an unnamed Bicolano “friend.”
The friend, the OVP said, was the one who arranged the meeting with Robredo, which was described as “casual.”
It also said that Duterte met with prominent Bicol personalities and heard mass with regular Bicolanos.
“She neither looked desperate nor distressed,” the OVP said to belie reports about how Duterte looked during the visit.
Robredo’s spokesman, Ibarra Gutierrez, confirmed the meeting between the two on Friday, but described it as “personal” and not “political.”
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, Gutierrez said Duterte’s visit to Robredo’s home in Naga City was “sudden.”
“She [Duterte] suddenly went to her [Robredo’s] home all of a sudden. She was politely accepted. They talked, but not about politics. It was just a simple conversation and not a meeting. Then she left. End of conversation,” Gutierrez said in Filipino.
He said while he disagreed with the politics of Duterte, he thought it was right that her predecessor welcomed her politely.
“Hindi tayo bastos,” (We are not rude.) Gutierrez added.
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