Leni hopes Rody will stop flirtatious jokes

MANILA, Philippines - Vice President Leni Robredo hopes President Duterte will no longer make flirtatious jokes about her, her spokesperson said on Thursday.

Georgina Hernandez said the Vice President felt the President should stop making jokes with sexual innuendoes that are not only offensive to her but to women in general. 

“We’re hoping, VP Leni is hoping, that this incident will no longer be repeated,” Hernandez said.  

In a statement on Wednesday, Robredo hit Duterte’s “tasteless remarks” and “inappropriate advances” in his speech.

Duterte had openly admired Robredo’s legs and smooth knees during the commemoration of the third anniversary of Super Typhoon Yolanda in Tacloban City last Tuesday.

In his speech, Duterte also joked that he might get rid of Robredo’s rumored boyfriend so he could court her. 

Duterte defended what he said as an attempt to “break the ice.” He also asked what was so special about the body of a woman that it should be exempted from teasing.

“I made the remarks to break the ice… So what’s so special about the body of a woman? Or the knee of a woman na walang kalyo? Ibig sabihin baka hindi nagsisimba (or the knee of a woman without calluses. It means maybe she does not attend mass)… A joke like that is nothing,” the President said.