FORMER Philippine President Rodrigo Roa Duterte said President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has nothing to do with the reports of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuing a warrant of arrest against him.
He does not even ask for help from the chief executive when it comes to this matter.
This was Duterte’s exact response to his former Presidential Chief Legal Counsel Atty. Salvador Panelo in a radio interview.
“They will not be able to catch me. They can [only] catch me dead. Let me be very clear on this also. Mr. Marcos has nothing to do with the ICC. As a matter of fact, I am not asking for his help. This is my… this started even before him. I’ll take care of myself. I will deal with the ICC myself. I don’t need [President] Marcos,” according to Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
“You soldiers, step aside because this is not your fight,” he added.
Before the news of Former President Duterte’s imminent arrest broke out, President Marcos already said several times that the ICC has no jurisdiction in the Philippines.
Atty. Panelo: ICC warrant of arrest vs FPRRD has no basis
As a lawyer and former cabinet member of then-President Duterte, Atty. Panelo echoed the same sentiments.
“There can be no basis of a warrant of arrest. Number one – it is the court that issues a warrant of arrest. But there are no more lawsuits against him. The grave threat lawsuit against him was already dismissed. So how can there be a warrant of arrest? And with regards to the ICC, that too. Before they issue a warrant of arrest, the preliminary investigation must have already taken place. There must be a determination of probable cause. But there’s none. We can’t even determine if they are investigating or not. Because the respondents must be notified – there’s none of this either,” according to Atty. Salvador Panelo.
FPRRD: ICC can be arrested if they enforce an investigation
Meanwhile, in the event that the ICC enforces an investigation in the Philippines, this was Former President Duterte’s warning.
“In the event that they conduct a judicial probe here, that is a sovereign function. Then, they can be arrested for exercising a sovereign function because they are not allowed,” Duterte said.
