Malacañang is unaware of any agreement reached between first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and the head of transport group Manibela, even as the group decided to cut short its planned transport strike following their meeting.
In a briefing on Wednesday, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said she had yet to speak with the first lady about the details of her conversation with Manibela Chair Mar Valbuena, who responded positively to the first lady’s appeal to reconsider the strike.
Castro said Manibela’s negotiations could also be conducted with government agencies involved in the transport sector, including the Department of Transportation (DOTr), Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), and Land Transportation Office (LTO).
‘So for now, we do not have a definite answer as to what issues could still be negotiated,’ she added.
Manibela called off its strike on Tuesday, which was only the second day of its mass action, after the LTO requested a dialogue with its members, along with other stakeholders in the transport sector.
Valbuena said the group did not expect the dialogue to coincide with an event the first lady attended at the LTO Central Office in Quezon City, where rice, assistance, and other forms of aid were distributed to jeepney drivers.
The transport leader and Mrs. Marcos also engaged in a lighthearted exchange during the event as they briefly joked about the transport group’s decision to call off the strike.
The first lady told Valbuena, ‘Don’t go on strike, okay?,’ to which he replied, ‘Not anymore, I love you.’
Malacañang could not confirm whether Mrs. Marcos’ presence at the LTO was a coincidence or intentional, as the first lady regularly leads the government’s rice distribution program in different parts of the country.
Castro said the meeting between the first lady and Valbuena resulted in a ‘positive’ outcome.