GETTING BETTER. Screenshot shows Kitty being visited by her father, President Rodrigo Duterte, in a hospital in Davao City. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo on Tuesday (Oct. 8, 2019) said Kitty is getting better now after reportedly contracting dengue. (Screenshot from @vduterteee on Instagram)
MANILA -- President Rodrigo Duterte’s youngest daughter with partner Honeylet Avañcena is getting better now after contracting dengue, Malacañang said on Tuesday.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said Veronica, fondly called Kitty, is on the way to recovery after she took to her Instagram stories to share a video of her father visiting her in a hospital room.
“Ang pagkakaalam ko, pagaling na siya (As far I as know, she is getting better now),” Panelo said in a Palace briefing, quoting Avañcena.
Panelo said Duterte, known for being a doting father, is most likely still in Davao City caring for his daughter.
Reports showed Duterte went straight to the hospital when he arrived in Davao City on Sunday from his second official visit to Russia.
Kitty is among over 800,000 Filipinos immunized with the controversial anti-dengue vaccine, Dengvaxia, according to former Special Assistant to the President and now Senator Christopher "Bong" Go.
Panelo refused to comment on whether Kitty’s case is a vote against Dengvaxia.
“I am not a doctor so my opinion will be incompetent,” Panelo said.
However, he said the DOH continues to promote its dengue immunization program after it declared a national dengue epidemic last month.
Data from the DOH showed that there were 146,062 cases recorded from January to July 20 this year, which is 98 percent higher compared to the same period in 2018.
“Kung ano yung agenda ng DOH, tuloy pa rin ‘yun (The agenda of the DOH will continue) unless stopped by the President,” he added.
Despite controversies hounding the anti-dengue vaccine, Duterte said he is open to the use of Dengvaxia.
In 2017, the government stopped the use of Dengvaxia after Sanofi reported that patients, who had no prior exposure to the dengue virus, were at risk of more severe dengue if vaccinated with Dengvaxia. (PNA)
