Reluctant traveler soon a globetrotter

He once revealed that prior to becoming President last year, the last time he traveled abroad was in 1998. But now there seems to be no stopping his globetrotting.

Returning home Saturday from a five-day state visit to China, President Benigno Aquino III already has “several” more foreign trips lined up, two of them slated this month, according to Malacañang.

Next in his September itinerary are state visits to Japan and the United States, the latter for the annual United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Shortly after assuming office in June 2010, Mr. Aquino said he would limit his foreign trips and be unlike his predecessor, now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, whom he had criticized for her supposedly excessive travels.

But just 14 months into the presidency, the 51-year-old bachelor has already flown to eight countries, the latest being China.

Natural for newbies

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte defended Mr. Aquino’s frequent flying, saying a Chief Executive just months into the job like him would naturally receive several invitations from foreign leaders.

“Being one of the relatively new presidents in the region, there are a lot of other leaders inviting the President,” Valte told reporters in Filipino.

“But given also the very hectic schedule of the President here, we take into consideration what we can do in deciding on these events,” she said.

She added: “There are several invitations for consideration also. I will have to get confirmation from the (Department of Foreign Affairs) because several countries have also extended their invitations to the President.”

She said Mr. Aquino had received an invitation to visit the US but “we have no confirmation yet on whether the President will be accepting.”

Japan again?

Should the Japan state visit push through, it would be the third time that Mr. Aquino would be in that country as President.

Tokyo served as the venue of the low-key August 4 meeting between the President and Moro Islamic Liberation Front chair Murad Ebrahim.

Mr. Aquino was also in Japan for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit in November 2010.

Apart from the two foreign trips scheduled this month, the President is also set to attend this year’s Apec Summit in Honolulu, Hawaii, in November.

His first foreign trip as President was also to the US for the UN General Assembly in September last year.

His media handlers then maintained that even with the price tag of P25 million, it was still cheap for a presidential trip to the States that included a 60-member delegation. They also had the President photographed while eating his lunch at a hotdog stand in New York City.

As President, Mr. Aquino has visited Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, and Brunei. “Of course, there is a need to visit our so-called neighbors,” Valte said, referring to the Southeast Asia trips. With a report from Inquirer Research