DOH chief to Noy: Take longer break

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino’s three-day break, which starts today, is not enough, according to Health Secretary Enrique Ona.

In an ambush interview, Ona said the President should take a break for at least a week, considering the problems that confronted the country in the last four months.

“You know what the President went through, going around the country, trying to solve all of these things and with all the pressure, three days is really not enough for him,” he said.

“I would like him to rest for at least one week. He is still a human being,” he added. Among the major problems that faced the nation were the standoff between government forces and the Moro National Liberation Front in September, the magnitude 7.2 quake that struck Central Visayas in October and Super Typhoon Yolanda last month.

Amid concerns raised by health experts over the President’s incessant coughing, Malacañang announced on Dec. 23 that the President would take a three-day break.

Ona said the President had turned down his advice for him to take a break for a couple of days every three or four months.

“He said it would be difficult to do that. You know that our President is a workaholic,” he said.

Ona, however, assured the public that the President is healthy.

“There is such a thing when you face a lot of problems, you need to relax and reflect over things. It’s always nice to have some break, especially when you are making very difficult decisions and those are what the President regularly faces,” he said.