ILOILO City bikers, including women and children, accompanied Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo and Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan during their visit to the famed Esplanade 4 in Iloilo City on Saturday.

The Ilonggo Riding Community hosted “Ride with Robredo” to highlight Iloilo’s two national gold awards in 2021: the Mobility Awards’ Most Bicycle-Friendly City and the Department of the Interior and Local Government’s (DILG) Best in Bike Lanes.

“Masayang tingnan na parang ‘yung lifestyle ng mga tao dito nabago dahil sa existence nitong bike lanes. Ito ‘yung pinapangarap ko sa buong Pilipinas, lalo na sa Metro Manila, na nakita natin ‘yung need talaga nito during the pandemic. (It’s happy to see that people’s lifestyle here seems to have changed because of the existence of these bike lanes. This is what

I dream of for the entire Philippines, especially in Metro Manila, where we we have seen the real need for this during the pandemic),” said Robredo, who was running for president in the 2022 elections.

Then, she emphasized the importance of being physically fit if you were a government leader.

“May obligasyon tayong manilbihan sa taong bayan in the best way we can. Mula noong nag-vice president ako, talagang nag-exert ako ng maraming effort to make sure that I’m healthy dahil kung nagkakasakit ka, it takes you away from your work (We have an obligation to serve the people in the best way we can. Since I became vice president, I really exerted a lot of effort to make sure I’m healthy because if you get sick, well, it takes you away from work)” Robredo added.

The vice president said if she were to win the presidency in the May 2022 polls, she would implement bike lanes around the country that will be helpful for commuters and also individuals who enjoy walking.

Speaking in Filipino, she also said similar esplanades would be built in other cities and municipalities when logistics and geographical conditions allowed.

During the 2016 national elections, Iloilo was one of the provinces where she received the most votes for vice president. Former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. received 127,434 votes, while Robredo received 706,052 votes.

She defeated Marcos by a large majority in Iloilo City, receiving 137,662 votes versus Marcos’ 33,778.

Robredo teamed up with Pangilinan as her vice presidential running mate in the 2022 polls.