Arroyo postpones foreign trip due to high blood pressure

Former President and incumbent Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has put off her plan to travel abroad on Wednesday because her blood pressure has not gone back to normal yet, her spokesperson said. Mrs. Arroyo’s spokesperson Elena Bautista-Horn said in a statement the former President has decided to leave for Singapore on Thursday, contrary to earlier reports the former president's group will leave on Wednesday afternoon. Horn said Mrs. Arroyo “decided to rest since her blood pressure elevated and has not normalized yet up to this time." Mrs. Arroyo and her husband, former First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, attempted to leave the country on Tuesday night, hours after the Supreme Court (SC) granted their petition for temporary restraining orders (TRO) halting the implementation of the watch list orders issued against them. The Arroyo couple was however blocked by officials from the Bureau of Immigration who were following Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s directive to still follow the watch list orders she issued against Mr. and Mrs. Arroyo despite the TRO. The Arroyo camp has repeatedly said the former president wants to travel abroad to seek medical help and not to escape possible prosecution. Mrs. Arroyo is suffering from a bone mineral disorder and hypoparathyroidism, while her husband has just undergone cardiac surgery. Mrs. Arroyo is currently facing plunder and electoral sabotage complaints while Mr. Arroyo is facing electoral sabotage charges in connection with alleged anomalies during the 2007 polls. — LBG, GMA News