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Saturday, July 29, 2006
Arroyo recovers from flu, advised to rest
MANILA -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo may be discharged from the hospital anytime after doctors attending to her declared her fit for release.
Arroyo's temperature had gone down to 37.5 degrees Celsius and the intravenous fluid attached to her was already removed Friday afternoon.
She was initially told to rest for 48 hours or until Saturday by her doctors after her bout with the flu.
Dr. Juliet Gopez-Cervantes, main attending physician of Arroyo, said the President is already on a full diet and taking a lot of liquids, particularly water and juice. She said Arroyo has had no fever since 7 a.m.
"The President is well and fully recovered from her flu. We continue to advise her to take a full rest despite this. From a medical stand point, she can be discharged anytime but we strongly advised that she get complete rest in the hospital given her propensity to work when she is in Malacañang," she said.
Cervantes said they preferred that Arroyo rest in the hospital, as it is the weekend anyway.
She said they have no problem treating Arroyo or ensuring that she complies with her medical instruction because she always follows whatever the doctors tell her.
Aside from ordering her to rest, Cervantes said they are also not allowing Arroyo to receive visitors. Nevertheless, National Capital Region Political Office Chief Vidal Querol and Isabela Representative Anthony Miranda managed to slip in and visit Arroyo despite the doctor's orders.
A pool media interview is also being arranged Friday night on the decision of the President that she would grant an interview to show everyone she is already all right.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said despite Arroyo's confinement at the St. Luke's Medical Center since Thursday afternoon, she continued to remain in control and even issues instructions, the last of which pertained to the evacuation of Filipinos from Lebanon.
Ermita said the President called him up to direct him to oversee and closely monitor the evacuation efforts in Lebanon.
Doctors advised her to continue to rest even after being discharged from the hospital. It is not, however, clear if her schedules next week, including visits to provinces of Cebu, Iloilo and Negros in relation to her super regions program, would push through.
Aside from the President, her granddaughter Mikaela Gloria was likewise hospitalized last week due to stomachache.
Pampanga Representative Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo, the President's son, said if it were up to him, he wants his mother to remain in the hospital during the weekend.
Aside from the congressman, all the members of the First Family visited and stayed with Arroyo until late Thursday night.
Yap said the First family even took Arroyo's mobile phone to ensure that she does not receive any calls and is forced to rest.
He however admitted that the laptop, which Arroyo brought with her during her confinement from June 22 to 24 at the same hospital due to acute infectious diarrhea, is with the President.
"As a matter of course laging nandun iyung mga equipment (she has the equipment with her always), laging nakatabi iyun (it's beside her always) but she's not using it. She's a very good patient, she's resting," he said.
Yap said Arroyo, when he met her Friday morning, immediately asked about the status of the stock market. He said this is understandable since the President closely monitors the trading even before she was hospitalized.
"Maganda naman iyung market (The market is doing well), we've been monitoring the market, trading has began but according to our sources in the market, the market is strong, the peso against the dollar is also moving very strong. So that's all she wanted to know and other than that she's resting right now," he said.
Yap assured that Arroyo remains in full control and continues to give official instructions including sending Defensor to attend in her behalf the anniversary of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita to attend the anniversary of a national daily.
He said aside from the stock market, Arroyo also gave instructions on ensuring the appointment of some Cabinet members to oversee the realization of projects and programs in the four super regions -- North Luzon Business Quadrangle; Urban Beltway; Central Philippines; and Mindanao. He declined to name the Cabinet members because they have still to be informed.
Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye, who visited Arroyo Thursday night, denied that Malacañang was an overreaction.
Bunye, during the Newsstand forum at the Ambassador Hotel, said that by bringing Arroyo to the hospital, they could ensure that she would follow medical instructions and have complete rest.
Defensor told the President's critics not to put color on the hospitalization of the President as it was only done on the advice of her doctors. He added that Arroyo's illness should not just be ignored.
Yap said the President's physicians and the Presidential Security Group (PSG) doctors that monitored her condition before bringing her to the hospital did "not want to take any chances."
On the statement of former social welfare secretary Corazon Soliman that Arroyo should tell the truth to avoid stress, which contributed to her illness, Defensor said that "kung wala syang magandang sasabihin huwag na lang magsalita (if she cannot say anything nice, she should just keep quiet)."
Defensor added that instead of criticizing Arroyo, they should allow her to rest and recuperate. "Anyway, dati naman silang magkaibigan (they used to be friends)," he added.
Yap urged supporters of the President to refrain from sending flowers and gifts to the President while she is in the hospital.
He said they should just donate the money to the President's Social Fund. Among those who sent the President flowers was Vice President Noli De Castro.
Querol, meanwhile, said they have raised the alert level in the region effective 7 p.m. Thursday following the hospitalization of the President.
He said there were no specific threats and the heightened alert is just a normal security precaution. He said aside from the alert, they have also deployed more police around the St. Luke's area. (JMR/Sunnex)
(July 29, 2006 issue)
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