Actress-singer Nadine Lustre encouraged Filipino voters not to be ashamed of their choices in next year’s election.

In a podcast hosted by Saab Magalona and Jim Bacarro, Lustre acknowledged supporting the Presidential bid of Vice-President Leni Robredo but made it clear that she respected others’ preferences.

“You can support who you wanna support. And you shouldn’t be afraid to say it to people. And if you wanna support someone, you do it all the way,” Lustre said.

“It’s like, ang weird kasi na you want to encourage people to vote and to be more wise on picking. Why would you be ashamed of your picks.”

Lustre said she was firm with her Halalan 2022 pick, but will not unfriend people who think otherwise.

“Ako naman, if you don’t like my pick, that’s your problem. Ako, I know who I’m gonna vote for. It’s just like that. I respect everyone’s preferences. I’m not gonna unfriend you just because you wanna vote for this person. That’s yours and I respect that, and I hope people do the same to me,” Lustre said.

The actress also discussed at length why she is very vocal about politics and other issues on social media, saying that she has seen “many terrible things.”

“It’s just really, really heartbreaking to see that there are a lot of people suffering especially because of the pandemic, you know. A lot of people have lost their jobs. Everyone is having a hard time trying to get back on their feet. Everyone’s struggling, you know, mentally and emotionally as well,” Lustre said.

While she acknowledged that she only has one vote, Lustre would still want to make difference when she voiced her opinions.

“I wish that the pandemic was handled better. It's those kind of things that you realized na I feel like I should do something or help making this country better. I’m one person but at least I'm involved. It's time for Filipinos to have better lives. It's been so long,” she said.

• Nadine Lustre throws support for Leni Robredo’s presidential run

“I'm just one person but maybe I can make a difference. I know a lot of people kind of look up to me. Not everyone would agree to what I say and my choices. But at least I can inspire and influence people and kind of wake them up na 'hey this is happening to us. I think we should do something about this.'”

Lustre became a hot topic on Twitter early October after she posted on Instagram Stories a video of Robredo announcing her decision to run for president.

She also reposted graphics containing “vote better” and “Halalan 2022” in the shade of pink, Robredo's campaign color.