VP Leni launches podcast to reach out to younger age group

MANILA — Vice President Leni Robredo has launched a podcast to be able to extend her reach to younger audience amid calls by some groups for her to seek the presidency in next year's elections.

"For so long, so many people have been asking me to do a podcast of my own, lalo dito sa office because a lot of our staff are very young people and sinasabi nila, 'Para naman makausap mo iyong mga age group namin' (They're saying, 'So you can talk to our age group')," Robredo said Monday in the first episode of her podcast with television host Bianca Gonzalez as guest.

The Vice President, who has yet to announce her plans in 2022, said that her podcast titled “The Leni Robredo Podcast,” would complement her weekly radio program where she mainly talks about the livelihood programs of the Office of the Vice President, as well as current projects to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

“Kasi siyempre, limited din iyong reach ng aking (Because I only have a limited reach in my) radio program. So hopefully, hopefully with this podcast, I will be able to reach the generation of my daughters,” Robredo said.

During the podcast, the Vice President and Gonzalez found similarities in their lives as they were both thrust into careers they have not dreamed of.

“So I think, gusto ko lang iyon (I just want that) i-emphasize for our listeners, especially the younger people who are listening to us na it’s okay, eh. It’s okay not to follow the playbook. It’s okay to chart your own course kasi ano naman, eh, ‘di ba, parang you don’t have to parang allow yourself to be pressured into doing things that you’re not comfortable with, or you’re not sure na doon ka talaga papunta (if you're heading there),” Robredo said.

While she is one of the possible candidates of the opposition coalition group 1Sambayan, the vice president did not talk about serious political issues in her first podcast.

• 1Sambayan: It's Robredo or Trillanes, but door still open for Isko

She admitted though that her faith had greatly influenced her political decisions.

“Mahirap siyang sabihin, Bianca, sa politika pero (It's hard to say that in politics but) a large part of all my decisions have been anchored on faith. Parang iyong my faith in the Lord na hindi, alam mo iyon, parang He will make things happen if it’s what He wants to happen. So iyong sa akin, parang mas ganoon (In my case, it's like that) and it’s pretty much parang has been my guide in all my decision-making,” Robredo said.

Robredo maintained she is open to run for the presidency but it is still too early to decide as she and her office had been preoccupied with COVID-19 response programs, such as vaccination projects in partnership with local government units and the private sector.

“Sa akin (For me), iyong public service has always been what I was doing before. Parang (It's like) I don’t like politics pero (but) even when I was still a lawyer in Bicol, parang (it's like) I was forever immersed in communities. So iyon talaga iyong trabaho ko, parang iyong pagpupunta sa mga (That has always been my work, which involve) farmers, sa fisherfolk, battered women, so it’s what I have been doing,” Robredo said.

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