The Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) rejected former president Rodrigo Duterte’s bid for the “indefinite adjournment” of all legal proceedings against him, and instead urged for an assessment of his medical condition to evaluate his fitness to stand trial.

OPCV Principal Counsel Paolina Massidda said in a 14-page filing dated Oct. 8 that the defense’s current submission about Duterte’s health does not satisfy adjourning the legal proceedings against him.

“She submits that the Suspect’s state of health should be properly assessed by the Chamber, as a matter of urgency to avoid delays in the proceedings, appointing independent expert(s) to evaluate his faculties in relation to his ability and fitness to participate in the next stages of the proceedings,” the document read.

This, it added, would be for the former president’s “own benefit” and “to enable the Chamber to assess the information against the stringent legal requirements of the criteria of the fitness standard.”

“All possible measures should be considered and exhausted before the Chamber can contemplate staying proceedings against the Suspect on an indefinite basis, as not only the defendant, but victims and the international community as a whole have a vested interest in seeing proceedings progress where possible,” the OPCV said.

“The interests of justice indeed require that individuals who stand suspected or accused of having committed some of the gravest crimes of concern to the international community be tried fairly and expeditiously. Fairness and expeditiousness are also entitlements enjoyed by the victims of atrocity crimes who have the right to truth and accountability,” it added.

But while the OPCV rejected the defense request for an indefinite stay of the proceedings, it also stressed that it will not oppose holding a status conference “to give the parties and participants the opportunity to discuss the available options and related scheduling matters.”

“In the Legal Representative’s view, the assessment of Mr. Duterte’s health conditions has to be conducted as a matter of urgency in order to avoid delays in the proceedings,” the document furthered.

The former president, who has been detained in The Hague, Netherlands for charges of crimes against humanity of murder since March, was supposed to face the ICC’s pre-trial chamber for a confirmation of charges hearing last Sept. 23.

The chamber suspended the hearing after Duterte’s defense team argued that he was unfit to trial, citing cognitive deterioration that allegedly made him unable to recall events, dates, and even members of his own family.

Recent interviews by the Duterte family, however, showed that the former president was able to talk about current issues, such as the flood control corruption scandal.