Senator Francis Tolentino believes that the country's return to the International Criminal Court (ICC) might require concurrence coming from the Senate.
Tolentino made the statement in reaction to President Marcos' pronouncement that the Philippine government is considering its return to the ICC.
The President made the disclosure in an interview in Taguig City where he was asked to react on the pending measures at the House of Representatives' that seeks to allow ICC investigators to investigate the war on drugs under the term of former president Rodrigo Duterte.
The senator explained that since the government has withdrawn its membership from the ICC's Rome Statute, "it would entail an accession to a new treaty again."
"So hindi siguro - sa tingin ko ngayon baka mali ako hindi siguro purely Executive act lang baka mangailangan ng concurrence ng Senate kasi parang papasok tayo sa bagong tratado. So tignan natin kung anong implications non (What I think is, I could be wrong, not purely an Executive act only but might need the concurrence of the Senate because we're going to enter a new treaty. So let's see what the implications there)," he said in an interview on Friday, November 24.
Tolentino though agreed with the President's stance that the issue of jurisdiction should still be clarified and answered such as who will be arrested, how charges will be filed, how it will be prosecuted, and that the Philippines is the one who should set this, not a foreign body.
"Kasi it is supportive of our claim that we are a sovereign nation. Our courts are functioning...tama si Presidente na pag mayroong gumaganang (the President is right that if there's a functioning) judicial system, walang karapatan pa yung other courts outside our jurisdiction to come in," he said.
Tolentino added that he thinks even the Supreme Court (SC) would subscribe to the notion that the country's courts are not functioning.
While explaining his stand on the recent calls for the government to cooperate with the ICC in its probe on the previous administration's war on drugs, Marcos brought up the country's possible return to the ICC.
"There is also a question: Should we return under the fold of the ICC? So, that’s again under study. So, we’ll just keep looking at it and see what our options are," he said.
The President said this as he reaffirmed his stand on the investigation of the drug war that claimed thousands of lives during the previous administration.
Since assuming the presidency, Marcos has been firm that the Philippines has no intention to rejoin the ICC.
He also said in March this year that the country is disengaging from the ICC after it rejected the country's appeal to suspend the drug war probe.
He stood by his constant pronouncement that the ICC has no jurisdiction over the Philippines and its move to investigate the killings related to the massive war on drugs is an "interference" in the country's sovereignty.