Osmeña is back

CEBU CITY — Mayor Tomas Osmeña is back.

He arrived Sunday afternoon from a medical check-up in the United States, apparently with a clean bill of health.

After a brief rest at home following his arrival at the airport at about 2 p.m., Osmeña was already up and about, attending the fiesta of Barangay Basak San Nicolas in the evening.

He was the special guest at the home of Vice Mayor Michael Rama, the acting mayor in his absence, and was greeted by both political supporters and adversaries alike.

Wearing a black polo shirt and black pants, Osmeña appeared to have lost some weight since he collapsed in a church last March 9 while attending a wedding and had to be taken to the hospital unconscious.

Doctors diagnosed him to have succumbed to hypertensive crisis and had to keep him under intensive care for 20 days. He eventually had to go on leave to seek medical attention and some rest in the United States.

Osmeña, who appeared relaxed, said he was already physically fit.

"I’m happy to be back. I want to thank those who prayed for me. I want to tell them that I’m perfectly normal. In fact, even better," Osmeña told The Freeman at Rama’s residence.

"My health is okay," he said, admitting though that his doctors in the US had asked him to quit smoking. Except that, he said there have been no other restrictions.

Osmeña said he will not be going back to the US for further medication but was instructed to have regular check-ups by his own doctor, Manuel Lim, a cardiologist.

Osmeña had filed for a six-month leave of absence but said he will be back in office sooner than that, although he would not say when. — Freeman News Service