Duterte to cut short APEC attendance

November 16, 2018

President Rodrigo Duterte will cut short his trip to Papua New Guinea where he is attending the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders' Meeting.

In an updated schedule sent Friday night, Duterte is set to arrive early Sunday morning, 3:15am, November 18, in Davao City.

"No more arrival statement," the latest advisory said.

Malacanang has yet to issue a statement why Duterte has to skip APEC activities on the second day.

Duterte is set to leave Papua New Guinea late Saturday night, November 17, after attending the AELM Gala Dinner and Cultural Performances at Hilton Hotel.

In an initial schedule, Duterte was supposed to arrive in Davao City on Sunday night and he was supposed to have an arrival statement.

With his decision to cut short his trip, Duterte could no longer attend the APEC Leaders' Arrival, Official Family Photo, International Monetary Fund Informal Dialogue with Leaders, Leaders' Retreat 1, and Leaders' Working Lunch.

Prior to his attendance to APEC, Duterte joined his counterparts in the 33rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit in Singapore.

During the second day of the summit, the President also skipped some of the meetings, such as the ASEAN-Australia Informal Breakfast Summit, the ASEAN-Republic of Korea Summit, the Working Lunch hosted by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and the Second Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Summit. Celerina Monte/DMS