'Unwell' Bongbong Marcos waiting for COVID-19 test results, Imee says
MANILA, Philippines (Update 1, 1:44 p.m.) — Former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has undergone a test for COVID-19, his sister, Sen. Imee Marcos said.
Bongbong on Thursday afternoon confirmed Imee’s earlier statement he is “unwell” and said that he is “doing ok and contrary to popular belief, [on self-quarantine].”
The former senator shared a photo of himself holding "The Daily Tribune" newspaper.
Bongbong said that they are still waiting for the results of the COVID-19 test.
“Fortunately, I feel much better and am getting stronger by the day. I have no doubt in my mind that this is partly due to excellent work of the nurses and doctors who helped me during this time,” Bongbong added.
Trip from Spain
News5 reported that Imee confirmed that Bongbong returned from a trip in Spain “unwell.”
Bongbong underwent a test for the novel coronavirus disease two days ago and results have yet to be released.
“Finally got a test two nights ago, getting better at home, (pero) wala pang result,” Imee was quoted as saying.
Kinumpirma ni Sen. Imee Marcos na na-confine sa ospital ang kapatid niyang si Bongbong Marcos matapos sumama ang pakiramdam. Pero nasa bahay na ngayon si BBM habang hinihintay pa ang resulta ng pagsusuri kung nahawaan siya ng #COVID19. | via @maeannelosbanos pic.twitter.com/QyOdjIT9UG
— News5 AKSYON (@News5AKSYON) March 26, 2020
Marcoses flew to Singapore?
Rumors of Bongbong being intubated at a hospital for a supposed pneumonia diagnosis swirled Wednesday night.
A STAR report dated March 24, meanwhile, said that Imee was advised by her doctors to avoid public gatherings since she has a cough.
Former Philippine Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Reuben Lista, a conveor of Alyansang Duterte-Bongbong, denied the rumors that Bongbong was airlifted to Singapore.
He also refuted reports that Imee was also unwell and flew to Singapore with her brother,
“Tell them that she is very busy calling on friends and government officers for PPEs, masks, food, money and other needs of front liners and our people,” Lista said.
At least four lawmakers have announced that they tested positive on COVID-19. They are Sens. Miguel Zubiri, Koko Pimentel, Sonny Angara and Rep. Eric Yap (ACT-CIS party-list). — Kristine Joy Patag with report from News5/Meann Los Baños
Follow this page for updates on a mysterious pneumonia outbreak that has struck dozens of people in China.
New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says on Sunday that he had contracted COVID-19, testing positive at a key point in his flailing campaign for re-election.
Hipkins saYS on his official social media feed that he would need to isolate for up to five days -- less than two weeks before his country's general election.
The leader of the centre-left Labour Party said he started to experience cold symptoms on Saturday and had cancelled most of his weekend engagements. — AFP
The World Health Organization and US health authorities say Friday they are closely monitoring a new variant of COVID-19, although the potential impact of BA.2.86 is currently unknown.
The WHO classified the new variant as one under surveillance "due to the large number (more than 30) of spike gene mutations it carries", it wrote in a bulletin about the pandemic late Thursday.
So far, the variant has only been detected in Israel, Denmark and the United States. — AFP
The World Health Organization says on Friday that the number of new COVID-19 cases reported worldwide rose by 80% in the last month, days after designating a new "variant of interest".
The WHO declared in May that Covid is no longer a global health emergency, but has warned that the virus will continue to circulate and mutate, causing occasional spikes in infections, hospitalisations and deaths.
In its weekly update, the UN agency said that nations reported nearly 1.5 million new cases from July 10 to August 6, an 80% increase compared to the previous 28 days. — AFP
The head of US intelligence says that there was no evidence that the COVID-19 virus was created in the Chinese government's Wuhan research lab.
In a declassified report, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) says they had no information backing recent claims that three scientists at the lab were some of the very first infected with COVID-19 and may have created the virus themselves.
Drawing on intelligence collected by various member agencies of the US intelligence community (IC), the ODNI report says some scientists at the Wuhan lab had done genetic engineering of coronaviruses similar to COVID-19. — AFP
Boris Johnson deliberately misled MPs over Covid lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street when he was prime minister, a UK parliament committee ruled on Thursday.
The cross-party Privileges Committee said Johnson, 58, would have been suspended as an MP for 90 days for "repeated contempts (of parliament) and for seeking to undermine the parliamentary process".
But he avoided any formal sanction by his peers in the House of Commons by resigning as an MP last week.
In his resignation statement last Friday, Johnson pre-empted publication of the committee's conclusions, claiming a political stitch-up, even though the body has a majority from his own party.
He was unrepentant again on Thursday, accusing the committee of being "anti-democratic... to bring about what is intended to be the final knife-thrust in a protracted political assassination".
Calling it "beneath contempt", he said it was "for the people of this to decide who sits in parliament, not Harriet Harman", the veteran opposition Labour MP who chaired the seven-person committee. — AFP
- Latest
- Trending
