Former Vice President and incumbent Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo on Saturday denied claims that she secretly travels to Manila every week, alleging that the social media account spreading the accusation is being funded by a local politician.
The controversy stemmed from a Facebook post by a user identified as “Niko Perez,” who accused Robredo of being a “liar” for supposedly concealing her frequent trips to Manila. The post was later deleted.
In a social media post, Robredo said the account began targeting her after she decided to run for mayor of Naga City.
“This troll started as soon as I decided to run for Mayor of Naga. The name used is an assumed name. Someone else used to handle it. It’s different now. Reports say a local politician is paying for it,” Robredo said.
She added that the account’s shifting targets made its alleged backer more apparent.
“It became very obvious who was behind it because when that politician had another rival, the page attacked that person instead. Now it’s targeting me again because we’re inspecting substandard work,” she said.
Robredo said she normally ignores online trolls but decided to address the allegations after being urged by someone she deeply respects.
She clarified that she was originally scheduled to attend a League of Mayors meeting in Cebu last Wednesday but was unable to do so after her flight was canceled.
According to Robredo, she reported to the Naga City Hall office from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m., left for the airport, then returned to work after learning that her flight had been canceled. She remained at the office for the rest of Wednesday and throughout Thursday before taking a bus to Manila on Thursday evening for meetings with the Quezon City government and the Commission on Elections on Friday.
Robredo also denied claims that she travels to Manila every week.
“I don’t go to Manila every week. My schedule is to travel there only once a month, and I usually go on a Thursday or Friday so I can spend Saturday with my daughters… I return to Naga on Sunday,” she said.
She explained that her monthly visits are also intended to seek assistance from national government agencies and private partners for projects benefiting Naga City, efforts that she said have secured around P1 billion in financial assistance.
Robredo added that recent trips to Manila became more frequent due to meetings called by government agencies and invitations from Naga residents attending events in the capital.
The mayor also stressed that none of her travel expenses have been charged to the city’s funds.
“Even when my trips are official, I have NEVER charged my travel expenses to the city government,” she said.
She further said that even her fuel expenses are paid personally and that she uses a sport utility vehicle purchased by her daughter, Aika Robredo, in 2012, rather than a government-issued vehicle.
