By Argyll Cyrus Geducos

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed that President Duterte will no longer go on a trip to Fujian Province in China next week to visit the college named after his late mother Soledad.

DFA Assistant Secretary Meynardo Montealegre made the announcement days Duterte’s scheduled work visit to China.

Duterte was supposed to go to Fuzhou in Fujian Province after his commitments in Beijing. However, Montealegre said the trip to Fuzhou was not in the President’s current schedule.

“Not in the schedule right now. It’s postponed to a more appropriate time,” Montealegre said during the pre-departure briefing for Duterte’s fifth visit to China Friday.

Chief of Presidential Protocol and Presidential Assistant on Foreign Affairs Robert Borje explained that the decision to postpone the trip to Fuzhou was logistical in nature.

“Sometimes the window shortens for reasons that are maybe logistical in nature, sometimes it’s substantive, sometimes it’s also due to domestic issues,” he said.

“But for this particular visit, there was a plan and then the recommendation now is to move it at a later date because it’s more appropriate to be done at a later date and not at this particular time,” he added.

“As of this time, it’s really more logistical,” he continued.

President Duterte is set to arrive in Beijing on August 28. He will hold his eighth meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping the following day.

The President is also set to attend a business forum on August 30 courtesy of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). He is also set to attend the opening ceremony of the FIBA World Cup on the same day.

On August 31, President Duterte will be flying to Guangzhou where Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan will accompany him in watching the game between the Philippine national team and Italy.

“Actually, the Vice President has been tasked by President Xi Jinping to specifically accompany the President to this game,” Borje said.

According to Borje, they were still working on President Duterte meeting the members of Gilas Pilipinas.

Meanwhile, Montealegre said the list of the President’s official delegation for his China visit was still being finalized. He, however, said that Cabinet officials from the economic and security clusters will be joining the trip.

Borje said the members of the delegation depends partly on the agenda items and the agreements to be signed.

“Since these are still being negotiated, we will get the final list closer to the date,” he said.