VICE President Sara Duterte has spoken about President Bongbong Marcos‘ position on rejoining the International Criminal Court (ICC).
According to VP Sara, she respects President Marcos’ stance on the ICC.
“We all should respect the position of the president being the chief architect of foreign policy. So, that should be everyone’s position,” according to Vice President Sara Duterte.
However, she stressed that she would remain firm against the foreign court’s interference.
The Vice President has previously stated that allowing the ICC to investigate the Philippines would be a violation of the constitution.
“We will continue to reach out to the Department of Justice regarding our position on this matter. And we will lay down the legal basis of our position with the DOJ,” Vice President Duterte added.
When asked about the apparent change in President Marcos’ position on the ICC, Vice President Duterte responded:
“I cannot speak for the President. We need to ask the President on this matter,” she stated.
To recall, President Marcos previously stated that any ICC investigation would be an interference in internal affairs and a threat to sovereignty. He also mentioned that the Philippines would not cooperate with the ICC in any way.
DepEd records over 1.7k reports of student abuse
Meanwhile, the Department of Education (DepEd) continues to strengthen its efforts against student abuse.
During the recently held culminating program of National Children’s Month, Vice President Duterte shared that they have received over 1,700 reports of student abuse since the launch of the Telesafe Contact Center Helpline.
The majority of the reports involve verbal abuse followed by sexual abuse and cyberbullying.
“We have a mechanism within the Department of Education, within the Learners Child Protection Office, where we bring down the complaints of the children to the school level for resolution,” Vice President Duterte stated.
The Vice President also reminded teachers and non-teaching staff of DepEd that their responsibility extends beyond providing quality education.
“We are at the forefront, both teaching and non-teaching personnel, in child rights and protection, and we have policies on child rights and protection. So, our teaching and non-teaching personnel should think about creating a healthy, safe space within the school for children,” she added.
