Thai prime minister surprises Duterte with birthday cake

MOBBED IN BANGKOK Cell phones flash as President Duterte is mobbed by the Filipino community upon his arrival at the
Royal Thai Navy headquarters in Bangkok. He returned to the Philippines early Thursday. —MALACAÑANG PHOTO

BANGKOK — An early birthday cake from Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha during their official dinner at the Government House caught President Duterte by surprise.

Mr. Duterte, who turns 72 on March 28, told the Filipino community here that  he was humbled by Prayut’s surprise.

“It was his birthday last night. But he knew that my birthday is near. That was why he stood up. He said I had a cake made for you. Happy birthday. So, hiyang hiya ako,” he told close to 2,000 overseas Filipino workers at Royal Thai Navy headquarters on Wednesday night.

Prayut, who celebrated his birthday on Tuesday, hosted an official dinner for Mr. Duterte after two hours of bilateral talks.

During their official toast at the dinner, Mr. Duterte assured Prayut that the Philippines was a “faithful friend” of Thailand.

“As Thailand continues to its own onward advance, rest assured that the Philippines will be there as a friend and as a brother to support. As I have said earlier, we are a faithful friend, sir,” he said.

After learning that the President would celebrate his birthday next week, members of the Filipino community cheered and started to sing “Happy Birthday.”

Mr. Duterte smiled after listening to the song and thanked the Filipino community. His response, though, was injected with humor.

“Thank you. To the most beautiful who are available, please stand up and let’s do beso beso (cheek-to-cheek greeting),” he said, his remarks drawing laughter and applause from the crowd.

Wishing for strength

What he wants for his 72nd birthday is something that money can’t buy.

Nine months into his term, Mr. Duterte is wishing for more strength to finish his work and deal with the country’s problems because 24 hours a day is not enough to complete a President’s duties.

“So my wish really, my prayer to God is that he give me a bit more strength to do our overwork time because it is needed. Twenty-four hours is really not  enough for the presidency, unless you want to sleep more than just about four hours,” the President said on Thursday in Manila after arriving from Bangkok.

He wants to “mitigate some of the rigors of governance and the problems,” he added.

Vision for PH

The President also hopes that people will understand his vision for the country.

“What I am asking for is help from the Lord and some, or maybe a lot of … that people will understand what I’m doing,” he said.

The President has been leading the country’s controversial war on illegal drugs, which has been criticized for the mounting death toll.

He said he also had to pore through a lot of state documents, and had to be careful about signing them lest a mistake lead to his impeachment.

As a lawyer, he needs to understand what he’s approving, Mr. Duterte said.

There is nothing more that he wants—not expensive gifts, not diamonds, he added.

“I have gotten everything. No more gifts—except maybe a prayer to God for my country,” he said.

“I have reached the apex of my career, material things … will no longer be of use to me,” he added.

Time with Stonefish

As for his actual birthday, he said he would like to spend it with his newest grandson, Stonefish, his children and other grandchildren.

“That would have been the greatest gift that I can ask on this planet. That would be enough for me,” he said.

The President also said he and his siblings usually celebrated their birthdays quietly. “Most of my siblings, we follow the same rule. We just sleep it off.” —WITH A REPORT FROM LEILA B. SALAVERRIA IN MANILA