Marcos Jr.’s camp submitted notarized medical certificate, Comelec data show

Presidential aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s camp has submitted a notarized medical certificate to the Commission on Elections last Monday.

This was indicated in the matrix of petitions filed against Marcos provided by the poll body on Wednesday.

“Notarized Medical Certificate and copy of prescription paper with license number of Physician submitted by Counsel for Respondent on 10 January 2022,” the Comelec information on the cases of Ilagan, Akbayan Citizens’ Action, and Mangelen petitions, which were all taken up in the Comelec First Division last Friday, stated.

Last Monday, Comelec Commissioner Rowena Guanzon, who presided over the preliminary conference on the three petitions versus Marcos, said she will require the presidential aspirant’s camp to present a notarized medical certificate that would justify the late dictator son’s absence in the deliberations.

She made the remark after Marcos’ spokesperson and chief of staff lawyer Vic Rodriguez refuted social media posts about Marcos’ radio guesting a day before his supposed appearance before the Comelec.

Last Friday, Marcos failed to attend the hearing on the three disqualification cases filed against him before the Comelec because he is “not feeling well," according one of his lawyers.

This did not go well with Guanzon, pointing out that Marcos still needs to be present via videoconference even though he is undergoing quarantine.

She warned of the consequence of Marcos' absence at the hearing as she stressed that he was summoned to attend it.

At the later part of the deliberations, a medical certificate dated January 7 from Marcos' physician was presented and read.

According to the medical certificate, Marcos was visited by his doctor at around 10 a.m. on January 6 or the day before the hearing.

His doctor said Marcos was “presenting with body malaise, febrile episodes, and difficulty in speaking due to a painfully congested throat.”

"Upon examination, he had a temperature of 37.8 degrees Celsius and his throat was swollen. He reportedly had direct contact with at least two individuals who later tested positive [for COVID-19]," the medical certificate read.

Social media users, however, noticed that Marcos had a virtual interview with a local radio station at around 4:45 p.m. on January 6.

On Sunday, Marcos’ camp defended the presidential aspirant’s absence on the Comelec hearing, claiming that he had not been feeling well and that his condition may have been aggravated by a radio interview.

Rodriguez said Marcos was already feeling unwell on Thursday, January 6—after exposure to a COVID-positive staffer—but still proceeded with his scheduled morning interview.

Rodriguez said Marcos’ physician arrived after the interview, determined that he had a fever and throat swelling, and instructed him to take a midday rest.

Despite these instructions, Rodriguez said Marcos went on with another radio interview in the afternoon of January 6.—LDF, GMA News