Robredo counts on sectoral members for LP strength amid ‘culture of fear’

Patty Pasion

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Robredo counts on sectoral members for LP strength amid ‘culture of fear’
'We will have a very difficult time convincing most of the politician members of the party to make their voices heard, to try to be game changers,' says Vice President Leni Robredo of the once ruling Liberal Party

MANILA, Philippines – Citing the “culture of fear” to displease the current administration prevailing in Philippine politics, the once ruling Liberal Party (LP) has accepted the reality that it cannot count on some of its members to help the party amplify its position on major issues.

Vice President Leni Robredo, LP chairperson, made the statement in a Rappler Talk interview with Maria Ressa on Wednesday, March 8.

“There is a sort of acceptance that at this point in the life of this administration, we will have a very difficult time convincing most of the politician members of the party to make their voices heard, to try to be game changers,” Robredo said, acknowledging the undiminished popularity of President Rodrigo Duterte.

“We have a lot of party members who’d rather be on the safe side than get the ire of the administration. While the party has stood up on many of the issues, we cannot really get the support of most of our members because really there’s a sense of being cooperative with the administration,” she added.

The Vice President cited how some LP members voted for the reimposition of capital punishment in the country – a priority measure of Duterte.

The House of Representatives passed the measure on final reading by a vote of 217-54, with one abstention. Of the 32 LP lawmakers, 15 said yes while another 15 said no. Two abstained from voting. (READ: LIST: How congressmen and women voted on the death penalty bill

“There’s a culture of fear prevailing in the political scene. One such exercise we recently saw was… the passing of the reimposition of the death penalty bill in the House of Representatives. We’ve had a lot of members of the LP who did not vote against it although there was a party stand,” she said.

The LP, as a party, is officially against the reimposition of the death penalty. Robredo clarified, however, that members were told ahead of the vote that they would not be sanctioned if they support the administration measure – which is “just living up to the spirit of the party where there are democratic processes that will be exercised.”

Given the political reality, the Vice President said the LP is taking the more “realistic route” of strengthening the party through organizing its sectoral membership, which it overlooked when it was the dominant party.

“It’s the more realistic route to pursue. Rather than pin all our hopes on our politician party mates, we think it can be good to solidify our sectoral base and start once again [by] learning about what the LP stands for, what liberal democracy is,” she said. – Rappler.com

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Patty Pasion

Patty leads the Rappler+ membership program. She used to be a Rappler multimedia reporter who covered politics, labor, and development issues of vulnerable sectors.