Senator Ronald ‘’Bato’’ dela Rosa on Friday July 29, disagreed with the suggestion of Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel that the Philippines should rejoin the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Pimentel revealed his position that the Philippines should "rejoin" the ICC during a TV interview today.
‘’Kanya-kanya paniwala (To each his own belief). I disagree with my colleague from Mindanao,’’ Dela Rosa, a former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief, said.
Both lawmakers are residents of Mindanao.
‘’For me the court of last resort and final resort is in heaven and in this physical world of ours the court of last resort is the Supreme Court,’’ he explained.
‘’Magtiwala lang siya sa ating mga korte (He should just trust our courts). There may be imperfections in it but it is our court and not a foreign court,’’ he said, referring to Pimentel.
On March 17, 2019, the Philippines officially withdrew from the ICC after the country’s highest court declined to overrule former President Rodrigo Duterte’s decision to leave the world’s only permanent war crimes tribunal.
The Philippines is the second country to withdraw from the Hague-based body after Burundi, which left in 2017.