Palace defends Aquino’s gun shop stop in San Francisco

Natashya Gutierrez

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'Let's allow the President a little rest,' says Malacañang in defense of President Aquino's side trip

 

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang defended President Benigno Aquino III from criticism over his stop at a gun shop in San Bruno, California, on the final day of a working trip to the United States, saying he also deserves some personal time.

Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda made the statement on Friday, September 26, following complaints by Filipino-American protesters that Aquino had not meeting with the Filipino community in San Francisco, the final leg of a trip to 3 key US cities, including Boston and New York.

“President Aquino has so many engagements, 94 engagements, and was on his way home. I hope our countrymen in San Francisco don’t take it negatively. Besides President Aquino already met them in his last visit to America,” Lacierda said.

He added that Aquino also deserved some time off. “Let’s allow the President a little rest.”

Lacierda said Aquino had already met with Filipino-Americans in San Francisco during his last trip there.

“The President met with a number of Filipino communities in Europe. In San Francisco, I believe that the President already had the opportunity to meet them the first time he went to the States sometime in 2010 or 2011,” he said.

Lacierda added that San Francisco was originally planned as just a technical stop  from New York, en route to Manila.

On September 16, Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Maria Andrelita Austria had said in Palace briefing on the President’s US trip that San Francisco was meant to be only a technical stop, but requests of “big business companies” to meet with Aquino in that city prompted a change in plans.

Aquino arrived in Manila on Thursday evening, after a 4-nation tour in Europe and a 5-day US trip. It was his longest time abroad since he assumed the presidency in 2010.

The President met with various world and business leaders in hopes of encouraging more foreign investments. He also rallied international support for the Philippines in its territorial dispute against China, spoke at the United Nations Climate Change Summit, and met with the Filipino community in New York, Boston, France, Spain, Belgium, and Germany.

In his final day in the US, Aquino had two business meetings, and was spotted at a fast food joint, a music store, and a gun shop. He reportedly bought gun accessories. Rappler.com

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Natashya Gutierrez

Natashya is President of Rappler. Among the pioneers of Rappler, she is an award-winning multimedia journalist and was also former editor-in-chief of Vice News Asia-Pacific. Gutierrez was named one of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders for 2023.