While President Marcos reiterated that his administration will not cooperate with any International Criminal Court (ICC)-initiated investigation on former president Rodrigo Duterte, he stressed that the Philippines has to live up to its obligations to Interpol once the ICC seeks the latter's intervention.
Marcos has maintained the statement of Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin that the Palace will not get in the way of Duterte's desire to be investigated by the ICC after he dared the body to probe his bloody drug war immediately.
"As the comment of the Executive Secretary, the former chief justice, if iyon yun ang gugustuhin ni PRRD, e, hindi naman kami haharang sa mga ICC. Di lang kami tutulong. Ngunit kung pumapayag siya na makipagusap siya o magpaimbestiga siya sa ICC, e nasa kanya 'yon. Wala na kaming desisyon doon (if that's what PRRD wants, we will not get in the way. We won't just help. But if he decides to talk to or be investigated by the ICC, it's up to him. That's not our decision to make)," Marcos said.
The President also stood by his previous pronouncements that his administration will not cooperate with the ICC but he reaffirmed the country's obligation to the Interpol.
"We do not cooperate with the ICC. That is the position of this government," he said in an interview in Tagaytay City on Thursday, Nov. 14.
"As Secretary Remulla explained before, we have obligations to Interpol, and we have to live up to those obligations," he stressed.
With the possible move of the ICC to seek the Interpol to transmit a red notice to the Philippine authorities against the former president, Marcos refused to make a comment on the government's position once Duterte is probed under the ICC through the Interpol's notice.
"We'll see. We'll see. We'll see how far it goes. We'll see what the ICC does," Marcos said.
During the quad-committee hearing on Wednesday, Nov. 13, Duterte challenged the ICC to begin its investigation into his bloody war on drugs immediately, saying he might die before ICC gets the chance to probe him.
Meanwhile, the Chief Executive said the Department of Justice (DOJ) will have to make the assessment on filing of cases based on the investigations happening now over the drug-related killings during the time of Duterte.
"Right now that is being done by the PNP (Philippine National Police) and so we are looking or we are waiting for their findings. But all of the testimony that was given yesterday really will be taken in, will be assessed to see in legal terms what is the real meaning and consequence of some of the statements made by PRRD. Now that will result in a case being filed here in the Philippines. We will just have to see. The DOJ will have to make the assessment," Marcos said.
"We are always monitoring all of these things, because the question of EJK (extra judicial killing) has not yet been answered. Who is responsible? And we have some of the mothers of the victims over there and up to now, they have not seen justice for the murders of their children. That's still...That is the DOJ's responsibility to continue to examine all bits of comments, of statements, of testimonies...to see that justifies the case to be filed," Marcos added.