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Robredo says VP stint an 'honor, privilege' despite 'ugly' politics

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Vice President Leni Robredo. OVP/Handout" src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/tvpatrol/08/25/vp-leni-robredo-ovp-3544.jpg"/><figcaption>Vice President Leni Robredo. <em>OVP/Handout</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA - Vice President Leni Robredo said Sunday it was a great honor and privilege to have served the Philippines despite what she called its ugly politics.</p><p>Robredo, in an interview with TV host and actress Toni Gonzaga, said she was grateful for the platform the Office of the Vice President gave to her in able to help people.</p><p>&quot;Despite the ugliness, I still think it has been a great honor and privilege to have been given this chance na makatulong (to help). Nagkaroon ako kahit kaunti ng (I had a) platform to help,&quot; she said.</p><p>&quot;At the end of it all no matter how ugly the political environment is, mas marami pa rin ang ipapasalamat (there are more things to be thankful for).&quot;</p><p>Robredo said her stint as vice president was not a personal accomplishment.</p><p>&quot;&#x27;Yung honor sa&#x27;kin is not the position or the title pero yung honor sa&#x27;kin is the platform that was given to me to make a difference in the lives of the communities and the people we help,&quot; she said.</p><p>(For me, the honor is not the position nor the title but the platform that was given to me to make a difference in the lives of the communities and the people we help.)</p><p>&quot;Number 1 ko talagang baon yung (I will always bring with me the) quality ng civil servants that I work with. I got to meet a lot of people and go to so many places na siguro kung di ako VP, di ko yun narating (I wouldn&#x27;t have reached if I was not VP) and along the way I&#x27;ve met so many inspiring people.&quot;</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1687690" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>The Vice President said her husband&#x27;s death was the biggest factor in deciding whether to run in the 2016 national elections, where she beat former Senator Ferdinand &quot;Bongbong&quot; Marcos.</p><p>&quot;Yung death niya (His death) made me realize a lot of things...Kung ano ang nakatakda yun talaga ng mangyayari eh (What&#x27;s fated will happen). We make the most out of it,&quot; she said.</p><p>Robredo said her husband has a &quot;visual representation&quot; is an &quot;ordinary brown moth&quot; that visits their household during important events such as their wedding anniversary, his birthday, or the time she decided to run as vice president.</p><p>&quot;Before I decided to run for the vice presidency, yung mga anak ko iyak nang iyak. They didn’t want. During that time yung brown butterfly nandun samin. Parang &#x27;pag andyan siya, source of comfort, parang assurance na nandito lang ako,&quot; she said.</p><p>(Before I decided to run for the vice presidency, my children kept crying. They didn’t want. During that time yung brown butterfly visited us. It&#x27;s like a source of comfor, of assurance when it&#x27;s near.)</p><p>Following her husband&#x27;s death, Robredo said she often tells God in her prayers that &quot;Thy will be done.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Ang iba nahihirapan paniwalaan yung sinasabi ko na wala pa akong decision (for 2022 elections), para sa’kin kung ano ang gusto ng Panginoon, mangyayari yun,&quot; she said.</p><p>(Some find it hard to believe that I still don&#x27;t have a decision. For me, whatever God wants, that will happen.)</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/10/21/robredo-on-2022-polls-too-much-at-stake">Robredo on crucial 2022 polls: We should give unity a chance</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/05/21/vice-president-leni-robredo-announce-political-plans-september">Robredo could wait to announce 2022 plans ‘as late as September’, says spokesman</a></li></ul><p>When asked to describe herself, Robredo said she was a &quot;Filipina who dreams of uplifting every other Filipino and Filipina.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Wala na kong ibang hinagad kundi yung opportunities na available for me, sana maging available din sa kanila,&quot; she said.</p><p>(I don&#x27;t aspire for anything else but to make opportunities available to me be available to others.)</p><div><strong>Watch the full interview here:</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SyBMFvoVtbI?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

Robredo, in an interview with Toni Gonzaga, said she was grateful for the platform the Vice Presidency gave to her in able to help people.