CHENNAI: Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, now recuperating after a serious ailment left her indisposed since September 22, is able to speak for a short while, said Apollo Hospitals chairman Prathap C Reddy. “The chief minister still has the tracheostomy tube, but she is able to speak for a few seconds through the speaker on the tube,” Reddy said on the sidelines of an organ donation awareness event in Chennai on Friday. Those who have to use the tube for long will be trained, but in Jaya’s case, it is only temporary, he said. “She will soon be able to speak without it,” he added. She was breathing on her own for 90 per cent of the time, he said, adding that the tube was just a matter of precaution.