Duterte bats away illness rumours

MANILA: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday batted away rumours he was gravely ill after not being seen in public for almost one week, saying he merely went on a confidential trip.

Duterte attended two public events, including a visit to an army command post in Butuan City, where he initially joked about his absence since June 12.

“I went to a funeral home. I fell asleep and when I woke up, I was horrified,” he told reporters.

“The funeral home made a mistake and put me inside a coffin. I was screaming and screaming.”

Jokes aside, the president revealed he was out of town “for a visit somewhere”.

“I had to go there incognito. That’s the truth. It’s confidential, I travelled like a private citizen to get to the place I wanted to visit.”

The 72-year-old president stressed that people should not worry about his health because Vice-President Leni Robredo can always succeed him if anything happens. “Do not worry,” he said. “There is the vice-president who will take over. My state of health is immaterial. The important thing is there is a successor.”

Duterte’s aides said he was resting since June 12, when he missed ceremonies for the country’s Independence Day, after a “brutal” schedule for almost a month amid the military offensive against militants in besieged city of Marawi.

Duterte has been hounded by speculation about his health since admitting in December that he used to take fentanyl – a strong painkiller often prescribed to cancer patients – for a spinal injury from a previous accident.

But he has stressed he is healthy despite suffering from migraines, chronic pain and Buerger’s disease, an illness characterised by inflammation of the arteries and veins in the arms and legs, which prompted him to quit smoking decades ago. – dpa