Bong Revilla wants five hours to visit ailing father

Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Detained-senator Ramon Revilla Jr. is asking the Sandiganbayan for a five-hour furlough so he could visit his father in the hospital.

In an urgent motion, the younger Revilla asked the court to let him leave detention either on July 14 or 15 from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. to visit his 88-year-old father at St. Luke’s Medical Center at the Bonifacio Global City.

“Senator Revilla feels distraught and concerned about this unfortunate development involving former senator Revilla Sr. especially because of his present detention. He feels it is his obligation to come to the aid of his father, who is very close to him, even by his mere presence, and cannot disregard a son’s natural urge and desire to visit and be with his ailing and weak father, and spend a few moments together, to provide former Senator Revilla Sr. the needed assurance and support,” his motion said.

Revilla Sr. was rushed on Saturday to the hospital due to “metabolic encephalopathy secondary to dehydration and aspiration pneumonia,” Revilla Jr’s wife Cavite Representative Lani Mercado said.

He is now out of the intensive care unit and in a private hospital room.

The elder Revilla served as a senator from 1992 to 2004. He is also an award-winning actor best known for his movie roles as “Nardong Putik” and “Pepeng Agimat.”

In his motion, Revilla said the court had granted him furlough under exceptional circumstances.

He asked the court’s understanding to allow him just like it did when it granted him a furlough to visit his son Cavite vice governor Jolo Revilla when the latter was also confined for a self-inflicted gunshot wound.