Duterte medical tests routine – Roque

MANILA, Philippines — There is nothing extraordinary about President Duterte’s recent medical procedures, Malacañang said yesterday, as it stressed that the 73-year-old Chief Executive is not suffering from a serious illness.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said Duterte had no qualms admitting that he underwent endoscopy and colonoscopy because it was just part of his routine.

“All medical conditions are otherwise confidential. The fact that he’s willing to share it means it’s no reason for alarm,” Roque said at a press briefing.

“There are no new findings. It’s a routine, just to find out if there’s something new. There’s none. If it were serious, the President would not have admitted it,” he added.

Last Friday, Duterte told a gathering of doctors in Cebu that he had undergone endoscopy and colonoscopy, medical procedures that he said were related to the Barrett’s esophagus he acquired when he was younger.

Barrett’s esophagus has been linked to smoking and heavy drinking. Endoscopy is performed to examine a patient’s digestive tract, while colonoscopy is conducted to detect changes in the large intestine.

Roque said Duterte’s hectic schedule is proof that the President has no serious medical condition.

“You have seen the schedule of the President. I cannot cope with his schedule. Most of you cannot cope with his schedule,” the presidential spokesman said.

“I think it’s his human nature. (The medical procedures are) no big deal so it was no big deal to disclose it,” he added.

Roque noted that the Constitution requires the disclosure of the president’s medical condition.

“But there is no serious illness that has to be disclosed... The President is transparent. He admitted several times that he wants to quit his post. He will not cling on if he’s dying or gravely ill,” Roque said.

During the campaign period for the 2016 presidential race, Duterte admitted having acute bronchitis and migraine related to a spinal injury he sustained in a motorcycle accident in the 1960s. He also has Buerger’s disease, an ailment tied to smoking that affects the arteries and veins in the arms and legs.

Last month, speculations that Duterte’s health is deteriorating surfaced after Communist Party of the Philippines founding chairman Jose Maria Sison claimed that Duterte fell into a coma.

Duterte denied this and claimed that it was Sison who is suffering from cancer.