THE KABATAAN Para Kay Ka Leody De Guzman defended the presidential aspirant after his Christmas photo with his family earned criticism online.

De Guzman posted the image on his social media accounts as part of his holiday greeting. However, some netizens criticized the candidate after seeing his “bourgeois” home and “expensive” dogs.

Some even questioned his activism and pro-workers’ initiative, with some calling him a sham.

However, Leody’s youth supporters defended him saying that the former garment factory worker knows the struggles of the ordinary man.

“Ka Leody’s humble beginnings and his continued commitment to immerse himself with the struggle of workers and ordinary citizens mean that he understands what it feels to spend day-by-day without a regular source of income, to travel as a commuter, and to live in a society that deems workers undeserving of a beautiful table-set-up or a cute corgi, undeserving of a decent life,” Kabataan Para Kay Ka Leody said in a statement.

“Instead of caricaturing each other, we invite anyone who supports a better future for our country to focus less on our (sometimes petty) differences and more on what we have in common – the goal of thwarting the Marcos-Duterte tandem from gaining further power,” it added.