Loren Legarda eager to return from treatment; son Leandro taking care of her--spox

Senator Loren Legarda is eager to return home from her medical treatment, where she has been under the care of her son, Batangas Representative Leandro Leviste, her spokesperson Atty. Tony La Viña said Friday. Legarda extended her medical leave to October 9, 2026. She has been on leave since August 3 to undergo treatment for a lung illness, having last attended a Senate plenary session on July 29. La Viña said Legarda is undergoing medical treatment in France and taking time to rest, as her condition worsens under stress or tension. “Aggravated siya when there’s stress, when there’s tension. So that’s why she’s taking the opportunity to have this,” La Vina said. “... Kasama niya si Leandro, who’s the one assisting her sa medical needs niya. As you know, Leandro is her main family now, so ‘yon ang ginagawa nila,” he added. La Viña noted that Legarda’s return to the Senate by November is not ruled out, as she remains eager to return home from treatment. He emphasized that Legarda has no reason to avoid coming home or to flee the country, pointing out that no cases have been filed against her yet. “She wants to come, she’s eager to come home. And very important ito ha, walang reason kung why she can't come home or why she can't be stopped if she wants to leave. There's no reason [dahil] wala namang kasong nakasampa sa kanya… Hindi totoo na tumakbo siya kasi huhulihin siya the next day, hindi ganon ang proseso,” La Viña said. Legarda and Leviste both face plunder and graft complaints in connection with incomplete solar energy projects valued at P10.44 billion. They have previously denied the allegations, with Legarda dismissing them as “false and baseless.” La Viña previously described the Office of the Ombudsman’s probe into Legarda and Leviste as “lawfare” and “political persecution,” or the weaponization of the law that has traditionally been used against government critics and opposition figures. —AOL, GMA News