SC asked to resolve Duterte petitions

A LAW FIRM has filed a second urgent motion before the Supreme Court (SC) seeking the immediate resolution of consolidated petitions for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte.

The Panelo Law Office, representing petitioner Veronica A. Duterte, submitted the plea on Tuesday, marking over 14 months since the initial filing on March 12, 2025.

“The delayed resolution on the consolidated petitions is a grave denial of the very liberty the writ of habeas corpus seeks to protect,” read part of the motion.

“The prolonged delay, coupled with the latest developments, has created a constitutional crisis that can no longer be ignored,” Salvador Paolo A. Panelo, Jr., counsel for Ms. Duterte, said in a separate statement.

The motion cites Senate Resolution No. 44, adopted on March 17, 2026, which expresses the sense of the Senate to protect Filipinos against extrajudicial rendition and guarantee legal redress before any surrender to foreign jurisdictions.

“The filing comes in the immediate aftermath of the dramatic events in the Senate on May 11, 2026, where an attempted enforcement of an alleged ICC (International Criminal Court) warrant of arrest against Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ M. dela Rosa inside the Senate premises led to contempt citations against agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the grant of Senate protective custody to the senator, and a standoff between the Senate and the NBI,” it added.

Recent rulings by the ICC confirmed jurisdiction and charges against Mr. Duterte, who has since been detained at The Hague. This only heightens the urgency for the High Court to intervene and declare the legality of his arrest under Philippine law, the petitioner argued.

The motion prays for the tribunal to declare the former president’s arrest and detention at The Hague illegal and unconstitutional, while directing the government to facilitate his immediate return to the Philippines. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking