MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte canceled his scheduled events in Malalag and Padada towns in Davao Del Sur because he is not feeling well, Malacañang said Thursday.
But presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said there was nothing to worry about the President’s condition.
“It’s just ordinary. Ano lang ‘yon, masama ang pakiramdam ng isang 74 years old,” Panelo said in a Palace briefing, quickly dismissing it as nothing but “ordinary.”
(It’s just ordinary. It’s just a 74-year-old not feeling well.)
“’Pag kulang ang tulog mo, natural lang ‘yon. But after that, tomorrow, okay na naman ‘yon,” he added.
(If you lack sleep, that’s natural. But after that, tomorrow, he will be okay.)
Duterte was scheduled to visit earthquake victims in Malalag and Padada on Thursday but it was moved to Friday.
This is not the first time Duterte canceled his public engagements due to sickness but the President himself has dismissed speculations about his failing health.
“Do not ask me anymore if I have an illness. Because all 74-year-olds in the Philippines – except for a few – have illnesses. You choose, hypertension, diabetes, kidney, lung cancer, mostly cancer of the colon. All of those illnesses are with me,” he told reporters in November.
He earlier admitted that he suffers from Buerger’s disease, migraine, and back pains reportedly caused by smoking during his youth.
He also revealed that he had a colonoscopy and endoscopy and that he has been undergoing regular blood tests.