Bello concerned over ‘rightists’ surrounding Robredo

Vice presidential candidate Walden Bello on Saturday lauded the integrity of Vice President Leni Robredo, but expressed concern over people around her who leaned towards right-wing politics.

"I have always said in my statements that I respect the personal integrity of Leni Robredo. But it is the forces around her that I have problems with," Bello said at the Pandesal Forum regarding Robredo,.who is running for president in Eleksyon 2022.

"Sa tingin namin meron siyang, 'yung tinatawag sa French na 'cordon sanitaire.' Meron siyang kordon ng mga tao na mas malapit sa kanan kaysa kaliwa," he added.

(We think she has what they say in French 'cordon sanitaire.' She has a cordon of people that lean towards the right rather than to the left.)

Labor leader Leody De Guzman, Bello's running-mate, pointed out that their political framework differed from that of Robredo, which allegedly relied on big businesses for the progress of the country.

De Guzman said it was a failure for some government officials to rely on trickle-down economics, where the financial benefits of capitalists will soon pass down to workers or the masses.

"What happened is not trickle down but trickle upward. The problem with my nine rivals is they still all carry that framework, to continue the framework of neo-liberal policies," De Guzman said.

The De Guzman-Bello tandem had expressed their opposition to contractualization, rice tariffication, and implementation of the value-added tax.

GMA News Online had sought comment on the matter from the Robredo camp, but they have yet to respond as of posting time. — DVM, GMA News