Palace tells ICC to not waste time on inquiries ‘that will not prosper’

The International Criminal Court (ICC) should not waste time and resources on investigations that will not prosper as its jurisdiction over the Philippines was not recognized, Malacañang said Tuesday evening.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque issued the remark after the Supreme Court decided to dismiss the petitions challenging President Rodrigo Duterte’s decision to withdraw the Philippines from the ICC.

“The latest High Court ruling, which is decided on mootness, acknowledges that the President is indeed the chief architect of this country’s foreign policy,” Roque said in a statement.

“Having said this, we call on the ICC not to waste time and resources on investigations that will not prosper as we do not recognize ICC jurisdiction over the Philippines,” he added.

According to the SC Public Information Office, the justices voted unanimously to junk the petitions for being moot.

Duterte decided to withdraw from the ICC after it decided to look into whether it had jurisdiction to probe allegations of state-sanctioned killings in his war on drugs.

In December 2020, the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor said there was a "reasonable basis" to believe that crimes against humanity were committed in the Duterte administration's war on drugs. — DVM, GMA News