Senator Leila de Lima on Wednesday confirmed her plan to seek reelection in the 2022 national elections, saying that the political persecution she has been subjected to by the Duterte regime only strengthened her resolve to fight for her advocacies.
The detained senator maintained that her unjust detention only pushed her to work harder to fight against injustice and defend human rights at all cost, which prompted her to seek reelection.
“Tatakbo akong muli. Hindi ako susuko. Tuloy ang laban,” De Lima said in a dispatch from Camp Crame.
“Sisingilin ka namin sa anim na taon na pambabalasubas mo sa aming bansa,” De Lima said.
In a letter addressed to President Rodrigo Duterte ahead of his sixth and final State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 26, De Lima chided the President for “failing to fulfill all of his campaign promises, particularly on issues involving illegal drugs, corruption, the West Philippine Sea (WPS) and economy.”
“Mahigit na apat na taon mo na akong ipinakulong para maitago ang iyong pagka-inutil, bukod pa sa paghihiganti mo sa akin. Mahigit na apat na taon na ipinagkait mo sa akin, sa aking pamilya, at sa labing-apat na milyon na bumoto sa akin. Mahigit na apat na taon na akin ngayong sisingilin sa pagtatapos ng iyong termino,” she said.
“Marami ang nagtatanong sa akin kung sa kabila ng pagyurak na ginawa mo sa akin ay may lakas pa ako ng loob na muling tumakbo bilang Senador sa 2022,” she added.
De Lima has been detained since February 24, 2017 over drug charges.
“Mapapatunayan rin na puro huwad ang iyong mga bintang laban sa akin, puro gawa-gawang paratang na ibabasura ng korte, katulad nung isa sa tatlong kasong hinaharap ko,” she said.
“Hindi mo naman talaga ako nawasak,” she told Duterte. “Hindi mo rin ako napasuko. Tuloy pa rin ang laban, kaya hindi rin dito matatapos ang aking kuwento.”
