DAVAO CITY (October 11)— President Rodrigo Duterte and the rest of the Philippine delegation are safe in Indonesia, after a 5.8 magnitude earthquake this morning. The earthquake affected the coast of Java and Bali islands.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Thursday said Duterte and his entourage are safe and are all accounted for.
Special Assistant to the President Christopher “Bong” Go said the earthquake did not frighten Duterte.
“Sanay yan si President sa ganun. Para sa kanya kung panahon mo na, panahon mo na (The President is used to it. For him, if it is your time, it’s your time),” Go said in an interview with Filipino reporters.
Go said the President was already sleeping when the 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck Bali and Java islands at 2:45 a.m., killing at least three people.
“Tulog na but nagising sya. Gumising talaga si Presidente, kaya pina-check ko kaagad sa PSG (He was already sleeping but he woke up. The President really woke up, so I asked the Presidential Security Group to check on him),” he said.
Go said he also checked on the President and even asked the PSG to look for an escape route.
He, however, clarified that the President did not leave his room.
“He’s okay, so he went back to sleep again,” Go said.
Citing the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta, DFA Assistant Secretary Elmer Cato said the earthquake struck East Java, killing three and wounding several others.
Cato said the tremor was also felt in Lombok and in Bali, hours after Duterte arrived in Denpasar for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) Leaders Gathering on Thursday.
Ambassador to Indonesia Lee Hiong Wee, for his part, said none of the estimated 201 Filipinos in East Java and 56 in Bali were affected by the earthquake.
