In the Philippines where celebrity endorsements heavily count towards courting voters amid election time, mega-celebrity Piolo Pascual has come out of the woodwork in support of Vice President Leni Robredo’s presidential bid in the May elections.
Social media trended with #PioloForLeni and “Papa P” (as he is known to fans and supporters) just a mere hour after the actor posted an emotional endorsement video on his Facebook page.
Even more telling was the video’s concept that centered on the true meaning of unity — the very theme that rival Bongbong Marcos and his running mate Sara Duterte, dubbed the UniTeam, have centered their campaign around.
“The true meaning of unity is the coming together of people. One Filipino for another. We are certain about that with Leni Robredo,” his Facebook post read in Filipino.
“It’s nice to hear the word unity, right?” Piolo’s opening statement in the two-minute video began.
“But it’s better for everyone to experience it — rich and poor, men and women, young and old, each putting aside differences to contribute to the country.”
The famous actor elaborated on the volunteerism exhibited at the height of the pandemic, such as people coming together to gather PPEs (personal protective equipment) for frontliners.
The actor explained that the act of coming together to provide what was lacking at the time is the true face of unity — as exhibited in the spirit of volunteerism surrounding Robredo’s campaign.
“Have you attended a Leni Robredo rally? This is also the kind of unity that takes place,” Piolo said.
“True unity is the promise that no one will be left behind — that all of us will take a step towards our dream society.”
It’s a major turnaround for Piolo, who previously declared in a 2019 interview that politics “was not his thing” and he had no plans of publicly supporting a presidential candidate.
The video racked up over 18,000 shares within an hour of posting, and Robredo supporters took to Twitter to express their excitement.
MGA BESHHH!!! SABAY SABAY!!!!!
— seiruhhhh 🎀 #LeniKiko2022 (@lakwatsarah) April 11, 2022
"I LOVE YOU PIOLOOOO!!!"#PioloForLeni#KayLeniTotoongUnity
LINK: https://t.co/pVMTErLoKs pic.twitter.com/aqekW6wZGy
I love you, Piolo! Salamat sa pagtindig! Tara na, #IpanaloNa10To!!!#KayLeniTotoongUnity#PioloForLeni pic.twitter.com/bU01YznmUK
— 🌸🌸🌸 Tonet 🌸🌸🌸 (@tonetjadaone) April 11, 2022
I LOVE YOU PAPA P!!!!!!! But what I do love more is character development. #PioloForLeni #KayLeniTotoongUnity pic.twitter.com/gbwPZ3z4ca
— CJ (@christianfreo) April 11, 2022
