A vague message appeared on Joe Jackson’s Twitter page Saturday, marking the first official statement from him and his team since news broke about his cancer battle.
“I have seen more sunsets than I have left to see,” the statement reads. “The sun rises when the time comes and whether you like it or not the sun sets when the time comes.”
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The tweet also included a photo of the 89-year-old Jackson looking out to sea during a sunset.
On Friday, TMZ reported that Jackson was in the hospital with “terminal cancer” and his family was “flocking” to his bedside. Sources told the site that Jackson, the patriarch of the Jackson family and Michael Jackson‘s father, has been fighting the cancer for “some time,” but his doctors now say it cannot be treated.
Meanwhile, former Jackson 5 member Jermaine Jackson told The Daily Mail that the family has had trouble seeing his father because of Jackson’s handlers. So far, only Jackson’s wife, 88-year-old Katherine, daughter Rebbie, daughter Joh’Vonnie and granddaughter Yashi Brown have reportedly visited him.
“No one knew what was going on — we shouldn’t have to beg, plead, and argue to see our own father, especially at a time like this. We have been hurting,” Jermaine said Friday. “We were not being told where he was and couldn’t get the full picture. Even from the doctor. My mother was worried sick.”
Jermaine added, “He’s very very frail, he doesn’t have long. The family needs to be by his bedside — that’s our only intention in his final days.”
Sources told The Daily Mail that even Janet Jackson has had trouble seeing her father. She did mention him during her speech at the Radio Disney Music Awards, where she received the first Impact Award.
“It’s beautiful, it’s humbling to be recognized as someone that has had a positive impact, but if I have been fortunate enough to impact others it is only because I, myself, have been greatly impacted by positive people in my life,” Janet said Friday night.
“My mother nourished me with the most extravagant love imaginable, my father, my incredible father, drove me to be the best that I can. My siblings set an incredibly high standard for artistic excellence,” Janet continued. “Sometimes, having an impact can be as simple as a smile, a handshake, or a hug.”
Jackson helped guide his children to stardom with the Jackson 5, made up of Michael, Jermaine, Jackie, Tito and Marlon. Jackson’s other children are Rebbie, La Toya, Randy and Janet.
Photo credit: Mindy Small/ FilmMagic / Getty
