Leni’s narrative

As I write this, Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo is leading Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in the vice presidential race by more than 200,000 votes. It has been a nail-biting race to the position which was once perceived only as a “spare tire,” and which has now become truly relevant. And it should be.

Perhaps it is because we are reminded of what happened in the past: a widow beating a powerful dictator.

But Leni, who is up against the dictator’s son, is more than a widow. Her journey from being a lawyer of the grassroots to a vice presidential candidate has prepared her to come out from the shadow of her husband, Jesse Robredo. Long before the call arose for her to run, she had been helping those on the outskirts of society.

As my mentor put it, “she has been walking the talk long before the talk started.”

I have been asked many times why I voted for Leni and not for Marcos given that, by parentage, I am an Ilocano, born and bred in Mindanao. But I have always thought that the demand for real change should cut across allegiance to one’s ethnicity, province or region. This is not just a fight between Ilocanos and Bicolanos, between activists and apologists.

Voting for Leni was not betraying my roots but being loyal to my country and what it has fought for: freedom, democracy and transparency. Her team is right. Leni’s fight for good governance is our fight. She has never stopped seeking justice for the victims of martial law. She has never stopped demanding an apology from Marcos for all the atrocities during his father’s dictatorship. She has never stopped calling on him to explain his family’s hidden wealth. She never gets tired of recounting her experience during Edsa I to the younger generation.

My generation has been criticized for being distant from the past. Some put the blame on our history books, some on technology, specifically social media. A leader like Leni will remind us that we should never forget what the older generations fought for. Perhaps, shades of the past will have to happen again, because somehow we never learn and there are those who want to change the narrative of our history. Perhaps, we need another widow to wake us up from the reality.

Our team espousing good governance is now being accused of manipulating the vote, of perpetrating election fraud. Our fight is not yet over. I urge my generation and every supporter to be vigilant. I urge my generation to pray for Leni’s triumph, and for real change to happen. We owe this to the nameless heroes, to our parents and grandparents who fought for our rights and freedom. We owe this to all the victims of martial law whose names have yet to be written in our history.

I hope that Leni’s narrative gets the kind of ending that it deserves. I am optimistic that the race will come to an end with Leni winning, fair and square. After all, she once declared: “Sa dakong huli, tayo ang mananaig.” We shall overcome.

Mary Grace Nidoy, 25, is a development communicator at the Philippine Rice Research Institute.