2016 vs 2022: Why Robredo changed mind to run for president

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 27) — Six-year-old receipts were brought out during the CNN Philippines debate and Vice President Leni Robredo was asked to explain why she backed down on her earlier statement that she will not run for the highest office in the country.

CNN Philippines played a clip of Robredo from the TV network's vice presidential in 2016 where she said she has no plans to run for president.

Six year later, Robredo is wooing the audience in the hopes of being the next commander-in-chief.

She explained that there have been many changes in the past years, making her break her promise to her daughters that the vice presidency will be the highest office she will apply for. She said she feared that disinformation and propaganda will prevail if there is no unified candidate.

"From 2016 to 2021, nakita natin kung papaano niyurakan ng fake news, ng disinformation, ng propaganda yung mga paniniwala, mga mindset ng napakaraming mga Pilipino. At dahil disinformation at propaganda yung namayani, talagang yung threat, na yung pagbabalik ng klase ng politika na puno ng korupsyon, yung klase ng politika na nagdala satin ng plunder in the past, yung klase ng politika na talagang madumi, ito yung klase ng pulitika na nagdala ng napakaraming paghihirap para sa ating lahat," she said.

[Translation: From 2016 to 2021, we saw how fake news, disinformation, and propaganda ruined the mindset of many Filipinos. Because of the reign of disinformation and propaganda, there was a threat of a return to politics filled with corruption, the kind of politics that brought to us plunder in past, the kind of politics that is dirty, the kind of politics that brought suffering to all of us]

Robredo previously said she worked hard to have one candidate run against Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, son of the country's late dictator, to stop the return of the Marcoses to power.

"Ang aking sinubukang gawin na because of the threat, itong klaseng politika ay babalik kung magkaroon ng pagkakaisa ang contenders ay hindi ko na kailangan tumakbo," she said.

[Translation: Because of that threat, I tried to unite the contenders, that way I don't have to run.]

She opted to file her candidacy when the unification plans failed. She is now going against Ping Lacson, Isko Moreno, and Manny Pacquiao — the three names she tried to court for the unification plans.

Robredo's daughters Aika, Tricia, and Jillian shared light moments online following the showing of the 2016 clip.

The same question asked to Robredo in 2016 was also posed to Marcos, who said too that he won't run for president. He was not able to explain on Sunday why he went back on his words, being the only presidential bet to skip the debate.