Former solicitor general Florin “Pilo” Hilbay, who ran under the Otso Diretso senatorial slate in 2019, has resigned from his political party, Aksyon Demokratiko. The party’s standard-bearer for the May 2022 polls is Manila mayor Isko Moreno.
“I write to announce my resignation from Aksyon Demokratiko and my endorsement of the candidacy of VP Leni Robredo for President,” Hilbay wrote in a statement.
Hilbay thanked his political party mates for having accepted him among their ranks, and for supporting his 2019 Senate run. The former solicitor general clarified that he was not leaving Aksyon Demokratiko to join another party, and respected the decision of his party to choose Mayor Isko as candidate for president.
That said, Hilbay wished to publicly support Vice President Leni Robredo’s bid for the presidency as an ordinary citizen, and needed to “resign from the only political party I have ever joined,” he wrote.
In his statement, Hilbay enumerated a number of issues that he believed Robredo would resolve. “We tackle issues of immense importance at local and global levels—poverty-inducing systemic inequality, massive debt, corruption, the destruction of institutions, accountability for EJKs, Chinese interference, climate change, a broken financial system, imperilled mass media, fake news, surveillance capitalism, impending war.”
“We need a president who will confront problems, not with publicity stunts to manipulate Filipinos but with honest-to-goodness attempts at solutions. Leni Robredo is that leader,” he wrote.
“We do not need more of the same, or even less of the same. We can’t afford another narcissistic, gaslighting troll for a president. A candidate who wakes up only during campaigns is no leader, and we can’t have another absentee president.”
“We need a president who will show up, level with the people, and treat them not as subjects to be subjugated but as fellow citizens and stakeholders in nation-building. We need a leader who will empower Filipinos, not kill them.”
Hilbay also wrote that Robredo has been more presidential than President Duterte, as she has continuously worked with a limited budget in helping citizens alongside fellow citizens, while informing the public on important issues, “all the while showing remarkable grace and grit while dealing with disrespect, propaganda, and fake news from Duterte and his minions.”
“She is a president who understands why the Marcoses are a current threat; she will hold Duterte and his cronies accountable for their crimes; she will stand up to China and not see the West Philippine Sea as merely for sale,” Hilbay wrote.
“She will continue to be honest, open-minded, transparent, and one with the citizens. She will respect her office and the Constitution,” he said.
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