Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 22) — President Rodrigo Duterte skipped the opening of the China-led Boao Economic Forum for Asia in Taguig City Monday.
Duterte was supposed to be a keynote speaker at the event. This is the first time the forum was held in the Philippines.
The forum’s opening coincided with a magnitude 6.1 quake which rocked parts of Luzon.
In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the President is not feeling well.
“He was in his Davao residence when the earthquake struck. He is not feeling well due to his punishing schedule and successive campaign sorties,” Panelo said in a statement.
Duterte’s absence followed increasing tensions between the Philippines and China over maritime disputes in the West Philippine Sea. The Philippines has expressed concern over the presence of Chinese vessels in Pag-asa Island in the hotly contested Spratly Group, as well as Beijing’s reported harvesting of giant clams in the Scarborough Shoal.
Over 300 business leaders, some of them coming from China, are attending the Manila event.
The forum is named after the town of Boao in the eastern coast China’s Hainan province facing the South China Sea. The sea is the subject of territorial disputes between China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
The President will then fly to Beijing, China to attend the 2nd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation along with dozens of heads of state from Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America.
