Former Vice President and veteran broadcast journalist Noli de Castro underwent surgery on Sunday morning due to an undisclosed illness but is now in stable condition, according to his daughter, Public Information Agency Director-General Katherine “Kat” de Castro.
In a now-deleted Facebook post, Kat asked the public to pray for her father, who is widely known as “Kabayan.” A few hours later, she shared an update saying that De Castro was already doing fine. In the comments section, Kat confirmed that her father had undergone a “surgery,” though she did not provide further medical details.
In a post this morning on her Facebook account, Kat Sinsuat De Castro reassured the public that her father is now okay, expressing gratitude to those who reached out and offered prayers.
“Thank you to everyone who prayed, messaged and called. ❤️ Dad’s okay. ” she wrote.
The post prompted concern among supporters and viewers of the longtime ‘TV Patrol’ anchor, whose health has previously been the subject of false death rumors circulating online.
In 2021, Kat also took to social media to debunk viral posts claiming that her father had slipped, fallen into a coma, and eventually died. Some of the hoax posts even cited former ‘TV Patrol’ anchor Ted Failon as the supposed source of the report. The false claims circulated shortly after De Castro announced his Senate bid for the 2022 elections, which he later withdrew.
De Castro addressed the impact of such misinformation during a congressional hearing in April, saying he had learned to cope with death rumors, though his family continued to be affected.
“Sabi nga ho nila, kapag nabalita na patay na kayo, ay mas hahaba pa ang buhay nyo. But sabi ho naming mga personalities, bad news or good news ay publicity pa rin po,” he said. “Kaya pag may ganyan ay pag-uusapan pa rin kayo. Pero may mga news naman na medyo masakit na, lalo kung affected ang ating bansa. Pero kung ako lang, okay lang ’yon. Pero pag affected na ang bansa, iba na ’yon,” he added.
Despite the rumors, De Castro has faced real health concerns in recent years. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he took an extended break from ‘TV Patrol’ after a makeup artist he worked with tested positive for the virus. Earlier this year, he was also absent from his television and radio programs for several weeks after suffering complications related to sciatica, according to Kat.
De Castro, who turned 76 on July 6, served as the country’s 12th vice president from 2004 to 2010 under the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
