Quad hearings in aid of ICC investigation

All roads seem to lead to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, the Netherlands. And so the pinklawans and talyanistas think.

The ongoing hearings of the House of Representatives quad committee (quad comm) coincide with news reports of the arrival of the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigators in Manila to investigate the Duterte administration’s war on illegal drugs.

While commercial mainstream media is silent about the ICC investigators’ secret visit to House Speaker Martin Romualdez and their stay in a posh hotel reportedly owned by a Romualdez minion, social media has been abuzz with this persistent news, with former Marcos loyalist vlogger Maharlika even exposing the passports of the ICC investigators.

With this context, former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte did the brave thing: he appeared before the 11th quad comm hearing, where congressmen made the mistake of crucifying an octogenarian on the issue of extrajudicial killings (EJKs). There was even one congressman who called the former chief executive a Pharisee, forgetting that in the eyes of the Filipinos, the members of the House of Congress are viewed as Judas, Barabbas and Gestas.

These traditional politicians forgot one thing: they will never win against someone who has nothing to fear or lose at this point. FPRRD is now 79 and has lived a full life. The Filipino people saw the 16th president on Nov. 13, 2024 a true leader with a pure heart and an unyielding spirit whose strength may be drained as he sat at a 13-hour uninterrupted hearing but had remained tall until the very end.

The surprise appearance of a two-time mutineer as a resource person did not sway public opinion against the former president but only reminded why quad comm has become Tuwadcom and exposed the House of Representatives under Speaker Romualdez as a circus.

No person in his sound mind would even consider the narrative of former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who used the same Excel spreadsheet of undeclared bank accounts in 2016 which was the basis of a plunder complaint against then Davao City mayor Duterte and later junked by Aquino-appointed Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales in 2017.

My crystal ball shows that the political career of Mr. Trillanes will be over after May 2025. He will soon be a has-been senator, with no law of national significance remembered to his name, who failed in his bid at local politics.

During the course of the 11th quad comm hearing, former president Duterte famously said and I quote, “The ICC does not scare me a bit. If I go to hell, so be it. Ginawa ko para sa bayan, para sa anak natin.”

Political noise that the ICC will issue a warrant for the former president’s arrest anytime soon has been circulating for months now and amplified with Mr. Duterte’s appearance at the 11th quad comm hearing.

The Rome Statute states that once the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) confirms the existence of probable cause, it can issue a warrant or summons for an accused to ensure the person’s appearance in the trial; the person does not obstruct the investigation or court proceedings and prevent the person from continuing the commission of the crime (Article 58, Section 1).

Here is my take: this would constitute an illegal arrest.

As a member of the ICC roster of counsel since 2004, I have consistently argued that the ICC lost its authority to probe or prosecute individuals involved in the war on drugs campaign.

The Philippines deposited a notice of withdrawal on March 17, 2018. It became official on March 17, 2019.

The Court Prosecutor failed to trigger the Court’s jurisdiction before our withdrawal became effective on March 17, 2019.

As contended by two Appellate Chamber judges, invoking the Burundi precedent, the Prosecutor can no longer open a preliminary investigation once the State’s withdrawal officially took effect.

It was only in 2021, or two years after we officially left the Court, that the PTC approved the commencement of a preliminary investigation.

This is what former executive secretary Salvador Medialdea pointed out during the hearing.

On the statement of former Chief Justice and now Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin that the government will feel obliged to consider the request of the ICC if it refers the process to the Interpol, it is my humble opinion that the Interpol cannot serve arrest warrants or make arrests anywhere, including the Philippines. It cannot compel the law enforcers in any country to arrest someone included in the Red Notice (fugitives wanted for prosecution or imprisonment). Each member-country decides what legal value it gives to a Red Notice. The Interpol is not a law enforcement agency and does not operate like national police forces. Ergo, it will have to rely on the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation to apprehend Tatay Digong.

Local law enforcers that serve an arrest warrant issued by a foreign court is unlawful and will constitute the felony of illegal detention. They could even face kidnapping and serious illegal detention charges. Only a Filipino judge can issue an arrest warrant.

Our legal proceedings are an integral part of our sovereignty and jurisdiction. The Constitution vests judicial power in one Supreme Court and lower courts established by law. Jurisdiction allows our government to enact a law (legislative jurisdiction), enforce the law (executive jurisdiction) and penalize those who violate the law (judicial jurisdiction). The State can only share judicial jurisdiction with an alien entity under a treaty. We junked our ICC membership five years ago.

Public officials who allow the ICC to do its bidding may commit culpable violations of the Constitution.

Let this serve a fair warning.