PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte is just doing well after disclosing that he suffers from an autoimmune disease that could potentially have serious complications, the presidential palace said yesterday.

“I don’t think it’s that serious for us to worry about,” presidential spokesman Salvador S. Panelo told DZMM radio yesterday.

Mr. Duterte, 74, was the oldest person to be elected president of the country, and his health has been the subject of speculations.

Mr. Panelo said the president had complained of not being able to sleep during his flight from Russia. The president told the Filipino community there that he was suffering from a chronic neuromuscular disease.

The condition “causes weakness in the skeletal muscles, which are responsible for breathing and moving parts of the body, including the arms and legs,” according to the US National Institutes of Health website.

A Social Weather Stations (SWS) poll in December found that 66% of Filipinos were worried about Mr. Duterte’s health. — Arjay L. Balinbin

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