Palace: Duterte feeling ‘much better’
Credit to Author: CATHERINE S. VALENTE, TMT| Date: Thu, 24 Oct 2019 02:49:00 +0000
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte is “presently feeling much better,” Malacañang said on Thursday, after his doctor ruled out any surgical procedure for the unbearable spinal pain that hounded him in Japan, forcing him to cut short his visit.
In a statement, Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo allayed public fears on the “present physical condition” of the President, who was diagnosed with muscle spasms after he underwent a magnetic resonance imaging and medical evaluation on Wednesday.
“As the public already knows, the Chief Executive suffered from a motorcycle accident several years ago, and from another minor mishap involving the same type of motor vehicle just last Thursday, October 17. The attending doctor said that there is a strong likelihood that these incidents may have caused or possibly aggravated the current pain he is suffering from in his lower back,” Panelo said.
“The President was advised by his doctor to rest, as well as to take medicines that will relieve him of the pain caused by the muscular spasms. His doctor ruled out any surgical procedure for the President,” he added.
Panelo, who also serves as Duterte’s top legal counsel, assured the public that “they need not worry about the President’s health.”
“The Chief Executive has been advised by his doctor to rest for a couple of days and limit his physical activity, particularly avoiding standing or walking for long duration. The President is presently feeling much better,” Panelo said.
He said the President would even meet with China’s Vice Premier Hu Chunhua on Thursday to discuss, among others, certain infrastructure projects in the country under Chinese financing.
“Despite the President’s somewhat impaired physical profile, he will continue to perform his presidential duties which include attending to local and foreign engagements in the following days, with the same passion and dedication, in obedience to the constitutional command to serve and protect the Filipino people,” he added.
Duterte, 74, returned to Manila on Tuesday night after he complained of “unbearable pain in his spinal column” days after he figured in a motorcycle accident.
He witnessed the ceremonies in the day but missed the banquet on Tuesday evening, where daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio took his place.
Last week, Duterte fell off his motorcycle inside the Malacañang complex. He sustained minor injuries — light bruises and scratches — to his elbow and knee.
Some world leaders, including Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, expressed concern over the President’s fall.
Duterte’s health has been the subject of much speculation, but the Chief Executive has repeatedly downplayed such concerns.
Section 12 of Article 7 of the Constitution states, “In case of serious illness of the President, the public shall be informed of the state of his health.”