There were two things that stood out in President Duterte’s one-hour-and-a-half hour tête-à-tête with Presidential Legal Counsel Sal Panelo: he didn’t want to talk about his health and he is obsessed with Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV.
After about ten minutes of monologue defending his attempt to nullify the amnesty granted to Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV by then President Benigno Aquino III Panelo wanted to talk about his health: “Puntahan naman natin ang mga agam-a gam ng taumbayan kasama na ang critics nyo na si Joma Sison. Sinasabi na kayo ay may sakit. Ano po ang masasabi nyo tungkol sa inyong kalusugan para marnig ng taumbayan?”
Duterte’s answer was about the alleged conspiracy of the Community Party of the Philippines and the Magdalo to topple him: “Alam nyo itong si Sison, pati itong Magdalo, pati itong ayaw sa akin, yung talagang hindi tumanggap sa akin ever since noong election, they have combined and we have the evidence and we have the conversation provided by a foreign country sympathetic to us. We don’t have the sophistication but the connections will be shown maybe any day now. I asked that it be declassified at ipakita nila sa lahat. Nahihigop lahat . They were in constant communication.
Panelo tried to stir back the conversation to the President’s health: “Sa punto po ng kalusugan, talagang malusog na malusog kayo, nakikita ng mga tao.”
Duterte didn’t comment.
