At their first meeting since Vice President Leni Robredo’s resignation from the Cabinet, she and President Rodrigo Duterte were “civil” to each other.

“It was a very civil meeting,” said Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella on Tuesday, January 31, during a Palace news briefing.

But apparently, during the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council meeting, the President still cracked jokes about Robredo’s knees, jokes that the Vice President admitted she found “inappropriate.”

“Again, he made a passing reference to that. It was a humorous reference, and I think the Vice President understood the context this time,” said Abella.

The spokesman said Robredo was “smiling” amid Duterte’s teasing.

In a Malacañang photo, Duterte could be seen taking the seat across Robredo, who, at the time the photo was taken, was smiling.

Asked if he thought the two highest officials of the land had patched things up, Abella said: “Everybody is mature about these things…. Yes, of course.”

Robredo was active in the discussion during the Ledac meeting.

“There was one or two comments, I think – I forget the subject matter – but she engaged in conversation, she engaged in the discussion,” said Abella.

The Ledac meeting was the first time Robredo and Duterte faced each other since she resigned from the Cabinet in early December 2016, after being told the President no longer wanted her present in Cabinet meetings.

The Vice President is a member of the Ledac, according to the law that created the body, Republic Act 7640.

The Ledac is chaired by the President. Its members, aside from the Vice President, include the Senate President, the House Speaker, 7 Cabinet members, 3 senators, 3 House members, and one representative each from local government, youth, and the private sector. – Rappler.com