Dying of cancer, quake-hit Indonesia's disaster spokesman battles on
[ad_1] JAKARTA: Indonesia's disaster agency spokesman is fighting a daily battle to update the world 24/7 on the latest developments in a deadly quake-tsunami, despite his own impending date with death from terminal cancer. Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, known affectionately as Pak Topo ( Mr Topo ), is the face of the government's communication efforts to get word out on the devastating crisis on Sulawesi island that has killed over 1,400 people. The 48-year-old refuses to pass the torch, dragging himself to daily press briefings, taking reporters' calls and communicating on social media at a frantic pace, even as he "feels weaker every day" from Stage IV lung cancer . "I can't lie about my physical condition — the cancer has spread to other parts of my body and it's weakened my body," he said in a heart-wrenching message to reporters on social media this week. "I apologise if I cannot respond to every question from journalists, my friends. If I was...