Honeylet to play host to spouses of leaders

Cielito “Honeylet” Avanceña

Cielito “Honeylet” Avanceña will play host to the spouses of the leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) here for a summit this week.

President Duterte has designated his common-law wife to handle the job of “official hostess” of the Asean spouses, Marciano Paynor Jr., director general of the Asean 2017 National Organizing Council, said on Monday.

Paynor said he believed Avanceña would do a good job.

Not her first time

He recalled that Avanceña took care of the wife of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe when the Japanese leader visited the Philippines last year.

“So this is not her first time [to play host] … . She can hold her own definitely,” Paynor said.

He said Avanceña would be assisted not only by the Palace social secretary and internal house affairs office but also by relevant government agencies, including the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and the Metropolitan Museum.

As of Monday, six Asean spouses had confirmed they would accompany their husbands and Paynor said a spouses’ program had been prepared for them.

Metropolitan Museum

As part of the program, Avanceña would show the spouses around the Metropolitan Museum and play host to them for lunch as well, he said.

Asked who are the spouses coming for the summit, Paynor could only readily recall the spouses of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei and Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

Both leaders are also making state visits to the Philippines timed with the Asean summit.