FACT CHECK: Leni Robredo visited the sick during her term as VP

There were at least three news items showing pictures and videos of Robredo’s visit to the sick while she was vice president, contrary to a claim

Claim: Former vice president Leni Robredo did not visit the sick during her term as vice president, which was from June 30, 2016 to June 30, 2022.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim can be found in an April 26 post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter). The post includes a picture of Vice President Sara Duterte visiting an injured soldier, taken from a February 23, 2024 post on Duterte’s official Facebook page, along with the following text: “Visiting the sick must be a natural thing for the Dutertes. Even Leni did not do this throughout her term.”

As of writing, the post on X had around 22,800 views, 200 comments, 36 shares, and 103 reactions. 

The facts: Contrary to the claim, Robredo visited the sick during her vice presidential term. The following news reports are some examples:

• A November 25, 2018 news item from the News5 official Facebook page, which showed four pictures of Robredo visiting two policemen injured from an ambush in Libmanan, Camarines Sur;
• A December 17, 2017 article from Pilipino Star Ngayon, showing Robredo visiting child patients in Quirino Memorial Medical Center in Quezon City;
• A May 29, 2017 news clip from the official YouTube channel News5Everywhere, showing Robredo visiting 30 injured soldiers in Adventist Medical Center in Iligan at the time of the Marawi siege.

Previous related fact-checks: Rappler has fact-checked several false claims about Robredo before. 

Ahead of the 2022 presidential elections, Robredo was cited as the top victim of disinformation by fact-checking initiative Tsek.PH, based on their curation of over 200 fact-checks in January 2022. At the time, then-presidential candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr. was the top beneficiary of disinformation carrying positive messaging. (READ: Robredo is top target of disinformation in initiative’s January 2022 fact-checks) 

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Presidential front-runner: The post on X was made amid surveys showing Duterte as a top contender for the presidency for the 2028 elections. According to a survey conducted by Pulse Asia in March, Duterte and Senator Raffy Tulfo are statistically tied in first place among presidential candidates, with the Vice President receiving 34% in voter preference and Tulfo obtaining 35%. Meanwhile, Robredo ranked third with 11%.

In a separate survey conducted by Oculum Research and Analytics in the first quarter of 2024, Duterte emerged as the top choice for president, followed by Tulfo and Robredo. – Percival Bueser/ Rappler.com 

Percival Bueser is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

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