MANILA — After an absence of more than 2 weeks, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla showed up at the Department of Justice (DOJ) Thursday morning to explain the reason behind his sudden wellness leave.

In a press conference in the presence of his undersecretaries, assistant secretaries and other heads of DOJ units, Remulla revealed he underwent a bypass procedure to remove a blockage in his heart.

The blockage was discovered towards the end of his annual medical checkup from June 21 to 23.

“I did a full battery of tests. Noong bandang huli, may nakita, in a procedure called angiogram, nakita na yung aking puso ay may bara,” he said.

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The Justice chief said the medical finding was unexpected because he had been exercising on a regular basis.

“Di ko na alam yan, kasi araw-araw nag-eexercise po ako. Hindi po ako tumitigil. I exercise every day. I lift weights 4 days a week. I play golf twice a week. Basta, I’m very active,” he said.

(They saw a blockage in my heart. I did not know about it because I exercise every day.)

Remulla however acknowledged that one of the main factors for his heart condition was his history of smoking.

“I smoked for 30 years. I stopped smoking January 5, 2010. So 13 and a half years ago…It’s the cause, sabi sa akin ng doktor, it’s one of the causative factors, major causative factor,” he said.

But he expressed gratitude that the blockage was discovered early.

"Ang swerte ko lang, never ako inaatake or na-stroke. Swerte ko nakita yung bara na pwedeng maging cause,” he added.

(I was lucky, I never had an attack or a stroke. I was fortunate that they saw the blockage that could have caused that.)

According to Remulla, the elective procedure was conducted on June 27.

By July 3, Monday, he was already out of the hospital, he disclosed.

Clad in a black shirt and looking well rested, Remulla said he felt fine and was slowly back to doing walking exercise while undergoing rehabilitation to regain the strength of his lungs, after undergoing intubation for 16 to 17 hours.

“Marami ho kasing umaatras sa ganitong—umaatras. Kasi hindi ho madaling magpa bypass, sabihin ko sa inyo. It’s not the easiest of things to undergo. But I have a great team of doctors,” he said.

“Ako’y nagpapasalamat na binigyan po ako ng malakas na pangangatawan at tayo po’y naririto. Pero this doesn’t mean that I should throw caution to the wind. Kailangang mag-ingat, tuloy-tuloy ang pag-iingat. My immune system is down, it has to go up. Syempre, that’s part of the cons e. Medyo mahina ang immune system,” he added.

(Many back out because a bypass is not easy. I am grateful that I was given a strong body and we're still here. But I should still be careful. My immune system is a bit weak.)

But he clarified that this was not yet the end of his 10-day wellness leave, which started on June 26.

Taking into account a holiday, the wellness leave, he said, would end on Monday or Tuesday next week.

“I just wanted to come here to tell you guys that I miss you, I miss the work, I miss the DOJ. Actually, I’ve been monitoring the work here,” he said.

He has scheduled a meeting with his undersecretaries and assistant secretaries on Monday.

Remulla said that though he won’t be physically present for a few days next month, there won’t be any disruptions to the DOJ’s operations.

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SPOKEN TO THE PRESIDENT

The justice chief also said he has spoken to and exchanged messages with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. who told him to prioritize his health.

“We have spoken. We have exchanged messages also and sabi nya, unahin ko na to. Unahin ko na yung pagpapagaling ang pagpapalakas para matuloy-tuloy na yung trabahong inilaan para sa departamento sa aking liderato,” he said.

(He said I should prioritize my recovery so that our work in the department would continue under my leadership.)

“He’s very happy that I made the decisions that I did to go through the procedure. And I thanked the president for the trust and confidence in me,” he continued.

RESIGNATION? “NEVER”

Remulla rejected suggestions that he would resign in light of his medical procedure.

“Never,” he said.

“I serve at the pleasure of the President. And I will continue to discharge my functions as long as the president believes in my capability to lead the department,” he explained.

Remulla, 62, took the helm of the justice department immediately after Marcos, Jr.’s assumption into office.

A former House representative of Cavite, he had vowed in his first speech at the DOJ in July last year that he would serve until the end of the President's term.

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