ES Recto defends FL Liza's birthday dinner: 'Not raining at the time'

Executive Secretary Ralph Recto on Tuesday defended President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. amid public backlash after videos circulated showing the chief executive singing at his wife First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos’ birthday celebration.

In an ambush interview, Recto expressed belief that it was not raining during the First Lady's birthday party.

“Pagkaalam ko birthday ng First Lady ‘yun. Nag-dinner lang sila. At noong mga panahong ‘yun, hindi naman umuulan,” the Executive Secretary said.

(What I knew was it was the First Lady’s birthday. They just had dinner. And at that time, it was not raining.)

Asked if there was anything insensitive regarding the event, Recto stood firm. “Like I said, noong panahong ‘yun, birthday ng First Lady. They had a small party at hindi naman umuulan noong weekend na ‘yun.”

(Like I said, at that time, it was the First Lady’s birthday. They had a small party and it wasn’t raining that weekend.)

The First Lady turned 67 on August 21. She earlier also received backlash for posting about taking a "birthday sabbatical" amid the widespread flooding.

Over the recent weekend, continuous heavy rains brought by the Southwest Monsoon or Habagat caused flooding in Metro Manila and several areas in Luzon.

Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro said the President continued to monitor the flooding situation and ordered concerned agencies to respond accordingly to the impacts of the inclement weather. — BM, GMA News