Palace on Duterte’s weeklong absence: Haven’t you worked at home?

PHOTOCOURTESY OF TOURISM SECRETARY BERNADETTE ROMULO-PUYAT

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte may have worked for five days straight in his home in Davao City but there’s nothing unusual about it, his spokesperson said Monday.

Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said this as he downplayed speculations that the President was seriously ill due to his prolonged absence.

“You don’t have to be suffering from any ailment for you to work in the house. In fact, mayroon na nga tayong batas na pinapayagan na natin ang empleyado na magtrabaho sa bahay, ‘di ba?” Panelo said in an interview over CNN Philippines.

(You don’t have to be suffering from any ailment for you to work at home. In fact, we already have a law that allows employees to work at home, right?)

Panelo was referring to the Telecommuting Act signed by Duterte in December 20, 2018, which allows employees to work from home.

“I was just citing that law so that you don’t have to ask why a particular person is working at home. But that’s not the reason. The reason is he wanted to focus on his work,” he said in a Palace briefing Monday.

READ: Work from home is now a law

Duterte was last seen in public on April 28 during the opening of the 2019 Palarong Pambansa in his hometown in Davao City.

READ: Duterte out from public eye for five days now; Palace silent

Since then, the President had no public appearance.

“You must remember that the President in the Beijing trip had a very punishing schedule. In fact, he had to miss one event because he had a migraine attack, and after that he had to attend to several meetings, and then when he arrived in Davao, immediately there was a Palarong Pambansa again,” Panelo said.

Duterte’s absences in the past have sparked rumors about his deteriorating health.

Asked about the Chief Executive’s condition, Panelo said there was nothing to worry about the President.

“Wala, wala ngang—walang health reason. Nag-concentrate lang siya, iyong ayaw niyang maistorbo. Kasi kung nandoon ka sa opisina mo, eh marami talagang mang-iistorbo sa iyo; maraming tatawag… ganyan talaga eh,” he said, defending Duterte’s absence.

(No, no health reason [to worry about]. He is just concentrating. He does not want to be disturbed. Because if you are in your office, many will disturb you, many will call you).

During the Palace briefing, Panelo again justified Duterte’s absence.

“Yes, he works at home. Haven’t you worked at home?” he said.

On Saturday, Duterte sent a photo to Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat after she told the President that reporters were asking about his whereabouts.

READ: How’s Duterte? Photo sent to DOT chief puts issue to bed

The photo he sent to Puyat showed him relaxing at his bed in Davao City while watching Quentin Tarantino’s “Django Unchained” on Netflix.

Panelo said Duterte read and signed a lot of paperwork during his stay in Davao.

“You know when a member of the Cabinet, especially the President, is not in his office for a few days, matatambakan ka. Ganyan siguro nangyari kay Presidente. Sa dami ng papeles na dapat niyang binasa, pipirmahan, natambakan. He decided to stay in the house and work on them,” he said.

Panelo also hit back at critics of the Presidents who called him lazy, particularly Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV.

“I’m sure he was referring to himself. Obvious naman eh. Ano ba ginagawa niya ngayon?” he said.

“Kumbaga masyado kayong nitpicking and hairsplitting. Lahat na lang,” he added.

Duterte is scheduled to lead the Cabinet meeting in Malacañang on Monday, May 6. /je