President has final say on whether PH will rejoin ICC, cooperate in drug war probe, says DOJ
President Marcos will have the final say on whether or not the Philippine government will rejoin the International Criminal Court (ICC), and cooperate in its investigation over the drug war killings under the administration of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Tuesday, Oct. 15.
“We would like to emphasize that under the Constitution, the President is the chief architect of the country’s foreign policy,” said DOJ Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic F. Clavano IV.
“As such, the Department will fully abide by and adhere to the President's foreign policy direction on this matter,” added Clavano.
The DOJ spokesperson pointed this out in response to calls for the Philippine government to rejoin the ICC, and have the report of the House of Representatives quad committee submitted before the ICC.
In 2018, then President Duterte ordered the withdrawal of the Philippines as a state party of the Rome Statute that created the ICC and this took effect on March 19, 2019.
The House quad committee has been conducting hearings concerning extrajudicial killings, illegal drugs and Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGOs).
During the quad-comm hearings, retired police colonel and former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) general manager Royina Garma recounted that in 2016 former President Rodrigo R. Duterte met her in Davao City to discuss the nationwide implementation of the “Davao model” in the war against illegal drugs.
Garma, who is acquainted to Duterte after having served as a police station commander in Davao City, explained that Davao City model "involves three levels of payments or rewards.”