Support for Sereno brings political risks, opportunities for Robredo

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo on Monday vowed to correct the wrong that is the ouster petition against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno before the Supreme Court, putting her position at odds with that of President Rodrigo Duterte.

"As your duly elected vice president, I took an oath to defend the Constitution. You can count on me to do everything in my power to right this wrong, should it ever come to pass," Robredo said in her speech at the Free the Courts: A Justice Forum event at the University of the Philippines. 

This position presents both challenges and opportunities for Robredo, the highest government official from the erstwhile ruling Liberal Party, and this is not the first time that Robredo has gone against the administration and its actions.

Robredo has faced stringent criticims from the president's allies and supporters before for the critical stance she has taken on issues like deaths in the government's crackdown on illegal drugs.

However, for Dennis Coronacion, the chairperson of the Department of Political Science of the University of Santo Tomas, Robredo's support for Sereno can become "politicially beneficial" for her.

"Her silence on so many issues makes the public wonder is she's really the leader of the opposition," Coronacion said in a message to Philstar.com.

Fallout from taking stands

Before this "silence," Robredo was vocal about her criticisms of administration policies and decisions such as the number of killings in Duterte's crackdown on illegal drugs as well as the burial of the late Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos at the national heroes' cemetery.

Robredo was even threatened by Duterte's allies in Congress led by Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez with impeachment after the vice president sent a video message to a United Nations side event denouncing extrajudicial killings and human rights violations attending the administration's war on drugs.

Duterte also told members of the Filipino community in Thailand that the vice president was already itching to become the country's leader.

Robredo was also told to cease from attending Cabinet meetings in late 2016 following her critical stand on the burial of Marcos at the National Heroes' Cemetery.

Despite this, Coronacion believes that Robredo should be bolder in assailing administration policies she believes are contrary to her principles.

"A real opposition leader is not afraid of losing a position in the government or getting incarcerated as a consequence of speaking the truth," he said.

The political analyst said that Robredo should also not be afraid of the administration's impeachment threats against her.

'Collission course'

Robredo's support to Sereno, who was appointed by former President Benigno Aquino III, who also belongs to the Liberal Party, puts her on a direct collision course with Duterte, who has declared his desire to remove the chief justice from office.

In a speech last month, Duterte said that Sereno was a "bad" that needed to be removed from the High Court, following months of denial that he was behind efforts to remove Sereno.

“I am now your enemy. You have to be out of the Supreme Court,” Duterte said during a press briefing at the Davao International Airport before leaving for the Boao Forum in Hainan, China on April 9.

The chief executive then directed his congressional allies from the ruling PDP-Laban party to move to impeach Sereno.

Aside from an impeachment case in the House of Representatives dominated by Duterte's allies, Sereno is also facing a quo warranto petition before the Supreme Court filed by Solicitor General Jose Calida, the government's top lawyer.

Calida is questioning Sereno's legal hold on office and has asked Sereno's colleagues at the Court to oust her.

In recent months, Duterte and Robredo have been seen together in a handful of public events and have been generally cordial with each other.

Despite this, Robredo cannot escape the fact that she is the highest ranking among opposition politicians.

When asked if Robredo is reluctant to be the leader of the opposition, Coronacion said, "Yes, but she has no choice because she's the highest ranking official among the opposition politicians."