Ending poverty should not be seen as a competition as no one has the monopoly of intention to address one of the long-standing problems in the country.

The camp of Vice President Leni Robredo issued this statement after allies of President Duterte criticized her for “playing good girl” to international donors and foreign countries “dictating” the Philippines.

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“The OVP believes that ending poverty should not be seen as a competition, but a collaboration of all capable parties,” Georgina Hernandez, Office of the Vice President spokesperson, said in a statement on Wednesday.

“Nobody has the monopoly of good intentions, the desire to serve the public, and models of how to address poverty,” she said.

“There should be no limit to generosity and helping, and everyone should find it in themselves to contribute to the bigger fight. We must remember that at the end of this dark tunnel of poverty is not the glorification of any individual or group, but the empowerment of the Filipino family,” Hernandez added.

Anakpawis Rep. Ariel Casilao, a member of the progressive Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives, criticized Robredo for not sharing President Duterte’s “vision for an independent country” and likened her extending hospitality to foreign donors to former President and partymate Benigno Aquino III.

Casilao also accused Robredo of “usurping” the mandate of the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), an agency led by former Gabriela Rep. Liza Maza of Makabayan.

During the “Angat Buhay” antipoverty summit Robredo’s office organized last Monday, the Vice President said poverty was the country’s larger war that needs more focus and attention amid the government’s bloody war on drugs.

Hernandez said the Angat Buhay, a comprehensive anti-poverty framework and initiative by the Office of the Vice President, is “one of the many effective solutions to build our nation.”

“Our desire is to start working and concretizing solutions and to complement the efforts of this administration,” she said.

Robredo’s camp maintained that poverty is “a big and complex issue that has been the bane of our country, if not the world.”

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“The urgency of the problem cannot be overstated. It goes beyond one’s political ideology,” Hernandez said.

“It requires governments to recognize their limitations. It requires all of us to go beyond self-interest, because having all hands on board should be the order of the day,” she added.

Addressing poverty was Robredo’s main campaign promise, vowing to focus on those improving the lives of those in the “laylayan” or the margins of the society.

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