President Rodrigo Duterte visited Jolo, Sulu, to condole with the victims of twin explosions and kissed the ground sites of the twin blasts that killed 15 people and injured 75 others last week, according to presidential spokesman Harry Roque, Sunday.
“This is to confirm that PRRD visited Jolo, condoled with some of the victims of the latest blast, and conferred with the Mayor,” Roque told reporters.
“He is expected [to be] back in Manila tonight,” he added.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and other officials accompanied the President, said GMA News stringer Peewee Bacuño.
Duterte offered flowers and prayers at a blast site. He then went to Camp Teodolfu Bautista and visited those injured in the blast and are now recovering in the camp hospital.
The President said during the “Singing for the President” online concert on Sunday afternoon that he would visit Jolo.
“I’m going to Jolo, diretso ako ngayon sa Jolo, doon sa blast site. Mabigyan ko lang ang mga sandalo natin, mga sundalo ko, mga pulis ko ng importansya sa kanilang kamatayan,” he said.
“I’ll go there to fulfill the duty of a commander in chief,” he added.
Palace earlier condemned the bombings in Jolo, Sulu, and urged the public to be vigilant.
Duterte visits Jolo, Sulu; kisses ground of blasts sites
“We condemn in the strongest possible terms the explosion incidents in Jolo, Sulu today, which left scores dead and wounded, including soldiers. We likewise condole with the families and loved ones of those who died in these tragic incidents,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said.
“We call on the residents of Jolo to stay vigilant and report suspicious personalities and unattended items in their areas,” he added.
WestMinCom commander Major General Corleto Vinluan said last week that four potential suicide bombers, who are all Indonesian women, are still in Mindanao.
The female bombers were children of the couple responsible for the Jolo Cathedral bombing in early 2019, he said.
The twin bomb attack on a Sunday Mass at Jolo Cathedral on Sulu Island has killed at least 20 people and injured dozens more.
He added the four women are with the Abu Sayyaf Group led by Mundi Sawadjaan.
Government forces are also going after the daughter of the Egyptian suicide bomber who attacked Indanan, Sulu, in 2019.