Rappler Recap: Robredo embraces fight for Philippines in high-stakes 2022 polls

It was a packed day for Vice President Leni Robredo as she finally announced her decision to run as president in the 2022 national elections. 

After delivering her speech declaring her plans for 2022 at 11 am on Thursday, October 7, Robredo filed her certificate of candidacy to run as president hours later at 3 pm.

Robredo will face off with at least five other presidential aspirants, including former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, son of ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

It will be a return bout of sorts for the two familiar rivals. Robredo beat Marcos in the 2016 vice presidential race and repeated that win in the electoral protest filed by Marcos.

At stake in her fight, Robredo said, were the lives of Filipinos as the pandemic continued to drag on under the Duterte administration’s mismanaged response. 

The opposition figure, who filed her certificate of candidacy as an independent, also rallied her supporters to go beyond their circles and expand their ranks, seeking to end “old, rotten politics” that has robbed ordinary Filipinos of the power to bring about change themselves.

In the video above, Rappler reporter Mara Cepeda summarized key moments of Robredo’s speech, how her campaign is shaping up, and what to expect from her next. – Rappler.com