Duterte back in Davao after 2 months at Malacañang

DAVAO CITY, Philippines —  President Duterte finally came home for the weekend yesterday afternoon after more than two months due to the community quarantine implemented in Metro Manila to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

The President has been holed up at the Bahay ng Pagbabago in Malacañang since the last week of February.

Duterte, on board a private jet that was allegedly thoroughly disinfected before he got on, arrived at around 2 p.m. here at the Tactical Operations Group XI headquarters of the Philippine Air Force at the Davao International Airport.

“He has been given clearance to land by Mayor Sara,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said, referring to presidential daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

Sara had earlier refused to let the President come home because the city had been under an enhanced community quarantine status since March.

None of the usual fanfare greeted the President when he arrived here. Strict protocols were followed, especially for members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) tasked to secure him.

However, it remains uncertain if the President will undergo a 14-day quarantine upon arrival as required of those arriving in the city. Davao City is under general community quarantine status starting yesterday.

Upon deplaning the President transferred to a waiting presidential helicopter that ferried him straight home.

The STAR learned that there have been very strict protocols for those who can go near the President.

“We were tested, I think, five times already before the President arrived, to see if we are infected with the coronavirus. We were tested with the rapid test and that PCR test,” one close-in staff of Duterte said.

Not all PSG members can go near the President, only a dedicated team formed for such purpose can do so.

The presidential medical team is also on hand to take care of Duterte and protect him from contracting the virus.

Even close-in personnel of the Presidential Management Staff and other offices are not allowed near the President.

The staff at the residence of Duterte have reportedly undergone several COVID-19 tests and were found to be negative for the virus.

Roque was quick to parry criticisms of special treatment for the President and his party, since ordinary citizens are not allowed to go to areas under community quarantine if they are not among the list of “authorized persons outside of residence” or APOR.

He noted that the President has stayed in Manila for 67 days, the longest period he has been away from home since he was a college student.

“This is the longest time he spent in Metro Manila since he was a student. He was allowed to go home by Mayor Sara after the enhanced community quarantine,” Roque said.

Apart from seeing his family, he said the President also needs to check the situation in Mindanao.

Duterte is likely to attend the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) meeting set on Tuesday, Roque said in a radio interview.

Presidential Security Group commander Col. Jesus Durante added, “He will be back (in Manila) for the next IATF meeting.”

Missing birthdays

Duterte has lamented the community quarantine in Metro Manila which prevented him from going to Davao. He said he missed a number of family occasions, including Mother’s Day and the birthday of his daughter Kitty, who marked her 16th birthday last April 10.

Mayor Sara, the president’s daughter with his first wife Elizabeth Zimmerman, also marked her birthday last March 31.

Duterte also marked his 75th birthday last March 28 while under self-quarantine in Malacañang.
The President had also publicly complained that he was unable to come home after Sara, as mayor, ordered a travel ban at Davao International Airport as part of efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19.

“I know that you have been yearning to go out, it’s like being jailed, all of us including me, I cannot even go home to Davao even if it’s the birthday of my grandchild, my partner and even of my child, I cannot go home,” he said in one of his televised addresses to the nation last month.

He revealed that Sara’s “cruel” order to disallow flights prevented him from going home.

“Why?  I was not allowed by the mayor there to visit, no airplane with passengers are allowed to land in Davao City, the mayor there has disallowed it. If that is in accordance with my instruction, or the rights of people to travel, that will be a big debate. I don’t want to quarrel with anybody, especially the mayor of Davao City who is also my daughter,” Duterte said.

The President said he missed three birthday occasions in his family.

“I myself, missed the three birthdays, what’s painful is that the person who barred me is my own child. So in these times, the laws that they enforce, I cannot do anything about it because I also try to protect the people of Davao City, it might be a very noble gesture but it can sometimes be cruel,” Duterte said. Christina Mendez