Kabayan Noli de Castro now 'OK' after surgery

Dubai: Veteran Filipino broadcaster and former Vice President Noli de Castro is in 'OK' condition following a recent surgery, his family confirmed on Sunday.

The news was shared by his daughter, former ABS-CBN journalist Kat de Castro, who first took to social media to ask for prayers for her father, popularly known as 'Kabayan.'

'Thank you to everyone who prayed, messaged and called. Dad’s okay,' Kat wrote in a subsequent post after updating her followers that her father was now doing fine. She confirmed in the comments section that the ABS-CBN news anchor had undergone a surgery, although she did not disclose further details about the procedure. The initial post asking for prayers has since been deleted.

The former Vice President, who turns 77 on July 6 next year, has been the subject of several malicious death rumours in the past. In 2021, the younger de Castro publicly debunked false social media posts alleging that her father had supposedly slipped, become comatose, and eventually passed away.

De Castro served as the country’s 12th Vice President from 2004 to 2010, under the administration of then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.