‘Enemies to lovers yarn?’ Pinoys poke fun at Marcos-Robredo meet… and his pink socks

MANILA, Philippines – Filipinos have discovered a new “ship” to make fun of, following President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s visit to Mayor Leni Robredo on Saturday, February 21, to discuss solutions to flooding problems in Naga City and the rest of Camarines Sur.

The meeting between the two former rivals, covered blow by blow by the media, opened a cascade of jokes, jibes, memes, and opinions about a possible pink-red partnership — “UniPink.”

Marcos, if one needs reminding, defeated Robredo in a fiercely contested presidential race in 2022.

Despite the President’s insistence that there was no politics behind the Naga handshake, Filipinos spent Saturday stretching their imagination and discovering newfound abilities in political forecasting.

The pink socks that Marcos wore during the visit, could this possibly mean a courtship of the pink for the 2028 elections? Why, the President’s spokesperson herself wore pink in a recent presser!

It didn’t help that Marcos’ visit to Naga City, though planned way ahead according to officials, happened just days after his friend-turned-enemy Vice President Sara Duterte announced that she would be gunning for the Philippine presidency.

What was once a Marcos-Duterte dream team has splintered and led to a very public fallout, which included insults and accusations of drug use from Rodrigo Duterte, a video of Sara disclosing she allegedly contacted hitmen against the First Couple, and, later, her apology to the Filipino people for enabling the return of the Marcoses. Not to mention four impeachment complaints filed against her with the House of Representatives. (READ: A tale of two dynasties: The Marcos-Duterte ties that bind)

‘Pano na si mowm? 🥺’

Like fans of a popular love team or online couple, TikTok users flooded the comment section with jokes about Sara’s supposed reaction to “Uni-Pink.” Other Filipinos lamented about the “SaBong” couple that they have failed to protect.

‘Ma, ‘wag mahulog sa mixed signals ha’

Not a few were unhappy about the Naga visit, and offered their advice as one would to a confused person in a problematic relationship.

Robredo, for one, is adamant that Naga City is her priority amid calls for her to run again in the 2028 presidential elections. “I don’t want to be distracted because we have a lot of work to do. Our response [to calls to run] is the same: regrets, because I don’t want to be always leaving [Naga], she said.

Kulay rosas ang… medyas?

As news of Marcos’ pink socks exploded online, Raffy Magno, executive director of the Robredo-led Angat Buhay, posted a photo with the text, “Kulay Rosas ang Medyas,” a callback to Robredo’s 2021 slogan “Kulay Rosas ang Bukas.”

Comments under the post include, “May pink socks na ba ang lahat?”

Musician Mark Escueta also posted a photo comment, showing off his “People Power @ 40 sa QC” ID and bright pink socks. An artist on Meta also shared their take on the tweaked slogan.

‘Trabaho lang’

Others shared their sober takes, saying the meeting should be viewed as just two politicians doing their job.

“Beyond partisanship, the country still has floods to fix, classrooms to build, hospitals to fund,” a Meta user wrote in a lengthy post. “Governance doesn’t stop just because campaigns were bitter. Seeing former rivals act like adults doesn’t erase history. It doesn’t cancel accountability. It doesn’t mean ‘unity’ as a slogan. It’s just that in a political culture addicted to drama, maturity is refreshing.”

“Alangan namang hindi niya harapin ang Pangulo ng Pilipinas,” former Bayan Muna representative Teddy Casiño added.

Some X (formerly Twitter) users reminded fellow Filipinos that Marcos’ gesture might be part of their effort to revise history. “Sa halip na kulay rosas ang bukas, naging medyas na lang. Anong honor ‘yon?”

You have other jokes, memes, or posts to share? – Rappler.com