Despite being told by his doctors to rest, President Rodrigo Duterte will attend a meeting today with the vice premier of China, his spokesman Salvador Panelo said this morning.
Duterte was ordered by his doctors to rest for at least two days after he experienced “unbearable pain” in his back during his recent trip to Tokyo. The pain, which turned out to be caused by muscle spasms, appeared a few days after the president was involved in a minor motorcycle accident within Malacañang Palace’s compound.
Read: Duterte back pain just ‘muscle spasm,’ says former assistant Senator Go
But Duterte apparently has no plans to take things slow, with Panelo saying in a statement that the president will meet today with Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua to discuss “certain infrastructure projects in the country which are financed by China.”
In his statement, Panelo added that the public doesn’t need to fret over the president’s sore back.
“The Palace assures our countrymen that they need not worry about the President’s health. The Chief Executive has been advised by his doctor to rest for a couple of days and limit his physical activity, particularly avoiding standing or walking for [a] long duration,” he said. “The President is presently feeling much better.”
Duterte’s government is generally perceived as having a pro-China tilt, with the president even announcing in 2016 an economic and military split from the United States, one of its oldest allies, to align himself ideologically with China. Critics, however, have pointed out that Duterte’s government has signed “onerous” Chinese loans that could be disastrous for the Philippines in the long run.
