Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 14) — President Rodrigo Duterte will no longer meet with farmers in Cotabato province as scheduled on Friday, his spokesman said.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said Duterte was working all day on Wednesday. He surmised that Duterte did not finish his work, which led to the postponement. Duterte was supposed to hold a dialogue with farmers to hear their concerns, Senator and former Presidential aide Bong Go said.
“Ang alam ko kahapon whole day siya nagtrabaho, paperwork, iyon, baka hindi niya natapos ‘yung kanyang binabasa. Pwede naman i-reschedule,” Panelo told the press on Thursday.
[Translation: What I know is yesterday, he worked the whole day, paperwork, there, maybe he did not finish what he was reading. We can reschedule.]
He added that it was not because of any health issues. This follows his announcement that the President opted to work from home temporarily, possibly due to lack of sleep.
Asked if the delay was due to a health concern, Panelo answered “No it has something to do with what he was doing yesterday.”
Worries over the President’s health have grown due to recent events. Last month, Duterte cut his trip to Japan short because of spinal pain. This came after he fell off his motorcycle on October 17.
In an interview with CNN Philippines, Panelo said the President’s health was “not perfectly normal.”
“If you say ‘okay’, ‘perfectly normal, it’s not, kasi dami niyang nararamdaman [because he’s going through many things],” he told CNN Philippines’ The Source on Thursday.
However, Panelo assured that the President is still able to perform many activities. Recently, Duterte was able to pay evening visits to the wakes of late business tycoons John Gokongwei, Jr. and Lucio Tan, Jr, Panelo mentioned.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo: President Duterte not taking 3-day break anymore | #TheSource https://t.co/sDo55hwVGt pic.twitter.com/WM6uzfmk7u
— CNN Philippines (@cnnphilippines) November 14, 2019
