Palace to Harry Roque: Running to be fit better than running away from law

Malacañang on Wednesday slammed former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque for criticizing President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr.'s run within the Palace compound to prove that he is fit, saying that releasing a medical bulletin would be better.

''Ang pagtakbo po ay hindi masama. Mas maganda po na tumakbo ng ilang metro kaysa tumakbo sa kamay ng batas. At tandaan po natin, kahit naman po noong nakaraang Pangulo, ilang linggo siyang nawawala pero ano ang sinabi ng kaniyang mga alipores at alagad?'' Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said in a briefing.

(Running is not bad. It's better to run for some meters than running away from the hands of the law. Let's remember, even with the previous president, what did his camp say about his health?)

''Ito po, nandiyan po si dating Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella, ang sabi, 'As far as I can see, there’s really no need to do that,' release Duterte’s health records. Kahit na po itong si Harry Roque, ang sinabi po niya, 'I don’t think the people should worry about lack of transparency because the President himself will say what his condition is,''' she added.

(Former presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella, for one, said 'As far as I can see, there’s really no need to do that.' Even Harry Roque said, 'I don’t think the people should worry about lack of transparency because the President himself will say what his condition is.')

Marcos, on Monday, challenged those who are assuming that he is severely ill to exercise with him. 

As he faced members of the media, Marcos even did a few jumping jacks to show that he was fine, adding that the rumors about his health were pure shenanigans. 

The President also shared that he hasn't been to the hospital for three months, saying that his diet and exercise were back to normal.

Earlier, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Acting Secretary Dave Gomez said the surge of disinformation on social media, particularly about the health of the President, was meant to destabilize the government.  

Gomez had said the PCO's Anti-Fake News Desk has detected a sudden and coordinated surge in disinformation across social media, noting that even the mainstream media ''have fallen victim to this vicious attack of the trolls.'' —LDF, GMA News