Ex-Pres. Duterte on fresh ICC drug war probe bid: It can do its worst, I don't care —Panelo

Former President Rodrigo Duterte said he doesn't care if the investigation on his "war on drugs" will re-open, insisting that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has no jurisdiction, former Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo said Saturday.

According to Panelo, he had asked Duterte about his reaction on the renewed push for a probe after the ICC authorized the reopening of the investigation into the deadly anti-drugs campaign by the previous administration.

“Sabi niya, I don't care what they do. As far as I'm concerned they have no jurisdiction. They have to show me their jurisdiction," Panelo told GMA Integrated News, noting Duterte's reaction.

"Sabi niya, if I'm guilty of anything, there would be a Filipino judge hearing my case. If I’m convicted, I will serve my term in a Filipino prison."

"Sabi niya, they can do their worst, I don’t care," Panelo added.

Official record on Duterte's war on drugs shows it has left a total of 6,181 people dead. However, rights groups say that up to 30,000 may have been killed, some were innocent victims, and that corruption was rife among security forces that acted with impunity.

On January 26, 2023, the ICC said its pre-trial chamber "is not satisfied that the Philippines is undertaking relevant investigations that would warrant a deferral of the court's investigations."

However, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla described the ICC's move as unwelcome, an irritant, noting that he would not stand for any antics that would tend to question the Philippines' sovereignty and status as a sovereign country.

The Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute, which established the ICC, in March 2019 during the Duterte administration.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., for his part, said that the country had “no intention” of rejoining the ICC. —Sherilyn Untalan/LBG/KG, GMA Integrated News