Robredo: #NasaanAngBisePresidente acknowledges me as true VP

Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday said the “#NasaanAngBisePresidente" trend not only helped amplify her office’s response to Tropical Depression Vicky but acknowledged her as the true second-highest official of the land.

The hashtag was created over the weekend in an attempt to imitate the “#NasaanAngPangulo” trend that had President Rodrigo Duterte fuming after the onslaught of Typhoons Rolly and Ulysses.

Robredo, in contrast, was delighted by the hashtag about her.

“Ina-acknowledge na nila na ako ‘yung panglawang pangulo kasi ‘di ba tawag nila [sa’kin] ‘Fake VP.’ So ‘Nasaan si Bise Presidente,’ may picture pa ako, so talagang ako ‘yung bise presidenteng hinahanap nila kaya nakakatuwa,” she said in her weekly radio show.

Robredo has been mocked as the “fake VP” by some critics who claim that she won the 2016 vice-presidential election through fraud, even after a recount solidified her victory.

On Saturday, the Vice President said she was coordinating with authorities in flooded areas after she was asked for her whereabouts as Vicky brought heavy downpours over several areas in Mindanao.

“Habang hindi pa nakakarating do’n ‘yung team namin, hindi pa kami masyadong nagkukuwento kung anong coordinaton ‘yung ginagawa namin. So no’ng hinahanap ako, sumagot ako para ipaalam sa kanila na hindi tayo nawawala,” she said.

“Sabi ko nga, parang na-legitimize na ‘pag sakuna, ako ‘yung hahanapin.”

The Vice President also lamented how one critic attempted to belie her statement that she was coordinating with authorities on the ground, while another sent her death threats.

“Nakakatawa na sa oras ng kalamidad, dapat nagtutulong-tulong tayo,” she said. “Para sa’kin, ito ba ‘yung klase ng mga supporters na gusto natin? Kasi ‘di ba parang nakakahiya naman.”

Robredo also said being from the typhoon-prone Bicol Region helped sharpen her decision-making during a calamity.

“Sa panahon ng kalamidad, ‘yung speed—’yung mga first few hours na intervention—’yun ‘yung pinakamahalaga dahil ito ‘yung nagse-spell ng life and death… Kapag hindi ka nakapag-aksyon, maraming mawawalang buhay sa’yo,” she said.

Around 3,500 Cagayan and Isabela residents have been evacuated as of Sunday noon due to flooding caused by Vicky.

The cyclone exited the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Sunday afternoon. — DVM, GMA News