Senator Leila de Lima was brought to the Manila Doctor's Hospital on Saturday, April 24, to have her checked for possible stroke.
The detained lawmaker has been granted a three-day emergency medical furlough by the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branches 205 and 256 after her on-call physician said she may have had a transient ischemic attack, or mild stroke.
The furlough started at 10 a.m.
De Lima's chief-of-staff, lawyer Fhilip Sawali, said that the senator was negative for novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
Prior to her hospitalization, De Lima said she experienced "bouts of headaches and persistent generalized weakness."
The medical furlough was deemed necessary as the Philippine National Police – General Hospital (PNP-GH) currently does not have the equipment to ascertain her condition.
De Lima assured the courts that “she will not be staying in the hospital longer than what is called for or necessary for the conduct of the prescribed tests and that she will render regular medical reports on her condition.”
She also told the courts that she will follow health and safety protocols during the medical furlough.
Her colleague in the Senate minority bloc, Senator Francis Pangilinan, prayed for her immediate recovery.
"We know Sen. Leila is a strong woman -- an oragon through and through, and we believe she can recover so long as she’s given the urgent medical attention not easily accessible for persons deprived of liberty," Pangilinan said in a separate statement.
"Over 1,500 days of unjust detention will take its toll on anyone -- and now it’s affected Sen. Leila’s health. This is a severe injustice and a violation of basic human rights," he lamented.
De Lima was previously confined at the Manila Doctors Hospital for about 24 hours, last February 11 to February 12, to undergo prescribed tests and as part of her routine general medical examination.
The opposition senator has been detained at the PNP Custodial Center in Camp Crame, Quezon City since February, 2017 and is undergoing trial for what she maintained were "trumped-up" drug charges against her.
Last February, De Lima was acquitted in one of her three drug charges due to the lack of strong evidence from the prosecution.