Palace: ‘Duterte human, not superman’
He is no superman, give him a break.
President Duterte’s disappearances from the public eye for brief spells—the latest six days—have also prompted the reappearance in the media spotlight of Secretary Martin Andanar, erstwhile Malacañang spokesperson, along with Ernesto Abella, and now head of the Presidential Communications Office.
Andanar has made himself available for interviews as speculation swirled about the President’s health, pleading for understanding.
“He is not Superman. He is not the Six Million Dollar Man or the Bionic Man. He is not a robot,” Andanar said on Wednesday at the weekly Kapihan sa Manila Bay.
“President Duterte is also human and he also gets tired,” he said. “If you ask me, let’s just give leeway to the President to have time to work alone, to work in the silence of his own office, to rest so that he could rejuvenate.”
Mr. Duterte was not seen in public from June 12 to June 16 and again from June 21 to
June 26. Malacañang said the President was just “tired” and needed to rest.
Asked if the Palace thought that there was a need to issue a formal medical advisory, Andanar pointed out that Mr. Duterte was already back on the public scene on Tuesday night.
“We saw at the Eid al-Fitr dinner in Malacañang that he’s really healthy. In fact, he gained some weight probably because he was able to rest and that is very important for us—that our President is healthy and that he is in control,” Andanar said.
On Wednesday, the President attended the 120th anniversary of the Presidential Security Group, went to Clark Air Base for the turnover of military aid from China and then returned to Manila to attend the anniversary of the Philippine Chinese Charitable Association.
Andanar said the President’s activities after he declared martial law in Mindanao on May 23 were “very strenuous”—visiting the wakes of soldiers killed in the battle against Islamic State-allied terrorists in Marawi City.
The Marawi conflict, now in its sixth week, is the worst crisis the President has faced since he took office almost a year ago.
“This really has taken a toll on the President. He got tired and so he took a rest,” Andanar said.
He said that being out of public view did not mean the President was not working.
“All chief executive officers can work even if they’re not heard on radio, seen on TV, or read in newspapers,” he said.
When asked if Mr. Duterte’s disappearances would be the “new normal” as far as his public schedule is concerned, Andanar said, “I can’t say if that’s going to be normal.”
“What I can say is that, ever since the President started working on June 30, 2016, our President has been visible not just on radio, television and in newspapers but also online like on Facebook,” he said.
