‘If it’s cancer, it’s cancer’: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte hints at health problems after undergoing medical tests
The president is required under the country’s constitution to disclose any serious illness to the public, and will be replaced by the vice-president if he decides to step down
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will let the public know if he has a “serious illness”, his spokesman said on Friday, a day after the leader said in a public address that he had gone to a hospital for tests.
Rumours of Duterte’s health woes re-emerged after the 73-year-old president, known for a busy schedule and long speeches, missed two official events on Wednesday, including a meeting with the cabinet.
In a televised speech on Thursday night, Duterte told top security officials he went to a private hospital for a procedure as his doctors wanted to get more tissue samples.
He did not elaborate but said in the same speech: “I will tell you if it’s cancer”.
“The result of the examination, whether or not it can be made public will depend on what they find out,” Duterte’s spokesman Harry Roque told a news briefing, citing a provision in the Philippine constitution on public disclosure of the president’s health conditions.
“The president is not inclined to hide anything about his health. I assure the public, the president will not hide anything. If it is serious, he will inform the nation.”