Robredo camp slams DILG exec over ‘non essential’ comment on VP

THE camp of Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo clapped back at Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Epimaco Densing 3rd for calling the second top official of the country as “non-essential.”

Lawyer Ibarra “Barry” Gutierrez, spokesman of Robredo, said in his tweet on Thursday that Densing “epitomizes the [administration’s] COVID response”.

“With cases rising, hospitals full, [and] millions struggling, instead of doing real work, he makes ‘jokes,’ plays politics, [and] bashes someone who’s actually doing the job they’re supposed to,” said Gutierrez.

“‘Di lang ito ‘non-essential.’ Ito ay pabigat (It’s not just ‘non-essential. It’s a burden),” added the Gutierrez about Densing.

The DILG official made waves on social media when he called the Vice President “lugaw” in an interview on Wednesday. He was supposed to explain about a viral incident, where a rider was blocked from delivering “lugaw” [rice porridge]. A woman, who is reportedly a barangay official, claimed the food was non-essential.

Densing had clarified his controversial “lugaw” remark was a “joke”, but added that he was “serious” about saying Robredo was “non-essential” for spewing “unfounded criticism” over the national coronavirus response.

Critics associate Robredo with “lugaw” or rice porridge, as it was sold by her supporters during her 2016 vice presidential campaign and fundraising activities.