Robredo camp to appeal P50,000 fine for violation of gag order

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo will file a motion for reconsideration on the decision of the Supreme Court, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, to fine her and former Sen. Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. for violating its gag order.

Robredo maintained that they were just trying to correct the misinformation hurled against her in connection to the electoral protest filed by Marcos, the son of the late Philippine dictator who committed massive human rights abuses and corruption during his more than two decades in power.

"If we will just allow the people to hear lies, they will really believe them. We will file a motion for reconsideration but we will follow the orders of the PET," Robredo said in Filipino in an interview on a local radio station here before flying to Basilan.

READ: Robredo: Marcos lying about Comelec rule on shading threshold

Robredo's explanation echoed that of Romulo Macalintal, her veteran lead election lawyer.

“Sometimes, we have no choice but to speak out, in order for the public to be enlightened amid the unrelenting black propaganda, which aims to discredit the recount being spearheaded by the PET,” Macalintal said.

Although it was yet to receive a copy of the PET's decision, Robredo's camp said it was ready to pay for the fine that the body heaped on it.

The Supreme Court, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, is currently conducting a recount of votes in two of the three pilot provinces chosen by Marcos in his election case against the vice president.

Marcos is alleging that vote-counting machines used during the 2016 national and local elections were manipulated to favor Robredo, who was the candidate of the ruling party then.

In order for his protest to move forward, Marcos must show a substantial recovery of votes in the three pilot provinces he identified. Without this, his election protest will be junked.

This week, the PET fined both Robredo and Marcos for violating the so-called sub-judice rule, which bars parties to a case from making public disclosures about it.

Some have criticized the PET's move, saying that the public deserves transparency in a case steeped with public interest.

The vice president said she had nothing to worry about and remained confident that her victory would be reaffirmed at the end of the recount.

"We are sure that the elections were clean. For me, we should not be complacent. We should not be complacent, just like what I said earlier, we don't allow the people to hear lies," Robredo said.

The vice president said that she hoped that the process would be over soon, noting that some of her supporters are worried because the PET's gag order has removed their ability to counter misinformation.

"For me, it's better for this to be finished as soon as possible. It will be better if this year (it will be finished)," she said before heading to Sumisip, Basilan where she is expected to led the launching of assistance program for those former Abu Sayyaf members who surrendered and out-of-school youth in the area

Robredo has partnered with Dualtech Center, a training facility with 140 partner companies, for her anti-poverty program "Angat Buhay."

Robredo said they were eyeing an initial batch of 20 beneficiaries, adding that they are also targeting out-of-school-youth vulnerable to be recruited by terror groups.

More than 100 Abu Sayyaf members have surrendered to the military, police and local government units since last year, following the crackdown by the Armed Forces on terrorist groups.

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Audrey Morallo reported from Manila.