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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider 'Game ako diyan': Trillanes says he's ready for Senate probe on alleged ICC welfare check on Duterte

'Game ako diyan': Trillanes says he's ready for Senate probe on alleged ICC welfare check on Duterte

Published Oct 2, 2025 09:33 pm

At A Glance

  • Former Senator Antonio Trillanes says he is willing to face a Senate inquiry after Senator Robin Padilla filed a resolution seeking to investigate claims that Trillanes was designated by the government to conduct a welfare check on former President Rodrigo Duterte at the ICC.
Former Senator Antonio "Sonny" Trillanes IV says he's willing to face a Senate inquiry into claims that he was designated by the government to conduct a welfare check on former president Rodrigo Duterte at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Netherlands. 
Senator Robinhood Padilla and former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV (Senate PRIB and MB file photo)
Senator Robinhood Padilla and former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV (Senate PRIB and MB file photo)
“Game ako diyan. Pero mas madali kung tanungin na lang nila mismo si Digong kung bumisita nga ako sa kanya o hindi (I'm game for that. But it would be easier if they just ask Digong himself whether I really visited him or not). Anyway, si Sara can talk to him over the phone any time,” Trillanes said.
This was after Senator Robinhood Padilla filed a resolution directing the appropriate Senate committee to investigate reports that Trillanes had been tasked by the Marcos administration to check on Duterte’s condition inside the ICC detention facility in The Hague.
The resolution cited Vice President Sara Duterte’s Sept. 24 statement wherein she expressed alarm over an alleged “welfare check” supposedly conducted without coordination with the family or Duterte’s defense team.
She claimed that the move was done under “false pretenses” of consular functions and in bad faith, allegedly for the purpose of submitting a report to Malacañang.
On Sept. 27, the Vice President further disclosed that her family had been informed that ex-president Duterte was found unconscious in his detention cell and later subjected to laboratory tests without their knowledge. This coincided with reports that Trillanes had been spotted outside the ICC detention center.
Padilla argued that the alleged designation of a private individual like Trillanes to represent the state before an international tribunal raises questions on legality, constitutionality, and propriety. He said the inquiry should determine whether such authority was officially granted by any government branch or agency, and under what mandate.
"There is a need to clarify whether such an act was officially sanctioned by any branch or agency of the government, and if so, under what authority and mandate such designation was given," the resolution read.
The senator stressed that the issue has implications on Philippine sovereignty, foreign relations, and the protection of rights of former officials under international investigation.
The Senate committee concerned has yet to schedule hearings on Padilla’s resolution.

Related Tags

Antonio Trillanes Robin Padilla International Criminal Court Rodrigo Duterte Vice President Sara Duterte
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