MANILA, Philippines – Vice President Leni Robredo has finally accepted President Rodrigo Duterte’s invite for her to be the co-chairperson of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD).
Robredo said this Wednesday, a day after Malacañang sent out a memorandum appointing her a post that she would share with Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief Aaron Aquino.
READ: Duterte appoints Robredo co-chair of gov’t committee vs illegal drugs
Initially, Robredo’s camp was mum on whether or not she would accept or decline the appointment, with spokesperson Barry Gutierrez saying that the ‘problematic’ memorandum offered a non-existent post, according of Executive Order No. 15.
READ: Robredo has not yet accepted drug czar post – spokesman
Duterte’s invite for Robredo to handle the government’s anti-drug operations was borne out of his frustration with the Vice President’s remarks in an interview with foreign media, where she supposedly said that the drug war has to be stopped.
Robredo later clarified that she never intended to ask for the drug war’s stoppage, as she only sought for a reassessment of the program.
It took some time for Robredo to respond for Robredo to Duterte’s dare, as she doubted the seriousness of the offer. She also fumed at Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo’s supposed invite sent through text messages, asking the administration to respect her office. /je
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