Palace snubs call to prove Duterte is 88% healthy

FILE: President Rodrigo Roa Duterte holds a meeting with the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) core members at the Malago Clubhouse in Malacañang on June 30, 2020. SIMEON CELI JR./PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

MANILA – Malacañang on Friday spurned the call of the lawyer who wants public disclosure of President Rodrigo Duterte’s health records to show proof that the 75-year-old Chief Executive is “88 percent” physically healthy.

This, after lawyer Dino de Leon wrote a letter on Thursday, asking Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque to prove his recent claim that Duterte’s physical health is at 88 percent.

De Leon explained in his letter that Roque, as Duterte’s spokesperson, may have “both factual and legal basis” to claim that the President is still in the “pink of health.”

“In light of the importance of the President’s health to the public, as well as the people’s right to be assured that the statements of the Presidential Spokesperson are accurate, I respectfully request that you provide the public with that basis of your conclusion that the President is 88 percent healthy,” he told Roque.

Responding to the letter, Roque said the Supreme Court’s (SC) ruling against de Leon’s petition seeking the release of Duterte’s medical records merely proves that there is no need to prove that Duterte’s health remains in good condition.

“Atty. Dino de Leon already lost his case in the Supreme Court where he asked the tribunal to compel President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to publicly disclose his health records. The decision speaks for itself,” he said in a statement sent to Palace reporters.

Roque was referring to the SC’s decision to reject de Leon’s plea to gain access to Duterte’s health records.

De Leon’s petition was denied by the high court in May. However, the SC released its resolution on the lawyer’s plea just on Wednesday.

In its five-page resolution dated May 8, the SC explained it had to junk de Leon’s request to divulge Duterte’s medical results and health bulletins for lack of merit.

The high court also noted that Duterte’s regular public appearances amid the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic belie de Leon’s “insinuation that the President is suffering from serious illness.”

Roque said de Leon should accept his defeat and respect the SC ruling.

“He (de Leon) should accept his legal defeat graciously and heed the High Court’s ruling,” he said.