Leni Robredo wishes Mar Roxas all the best as new DILG chief

Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo, the widow of the late Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, said she wishes nothing but the best for his successor, Mar Roxas. “I always wish him well. I have full trust in the capability of Sec. Roxas,” Robredo said at the De La Salle University in Manila on Thursday, when its Institute of Governance was renamed the Jesse M. Robredo Institute of Governance. Robredo attended the event to give a response to the honor. “In fact, when I learned that [Roxas] was the one appointed at the DILG, I was very happy. I know that he shared the same ideas as my husband. I only wish the best for him as head of the department,” she continued. Roxas was also supposed to be at the event, but organizers and a member of his staff said he had to decline the invitation because of a meeting he had to attend. Jesse Robredo died on August 18, when the Piper Seneca plane he was in with three others crashed off Masbate. President Benigno Aquino III appointed Roxas to his new post on August 31. Prior to his assignment, Roxas was the Secretary of the Department of Transportation and Communications. Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya was appointed Roxas’ replacement at the DOTC. Roxas took his oath as the new DILG head in front of Aquino on September 29. — BM, GMA News