[Rappler Investigates] Duterte isn’t coming home

We’ve been closely monitoring developments in The Hague ever since former president Rodrigo Duterte was arrested on March 11, 2025. Remember the mad news scramble to confirm the issuance of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC) days before that?

It’s been more than a year since then and on Wednesday, April 22, the ICC finally settled the question of whether or not it has jurisdiction over Duterte’s case involving crimes against humanity. 

It rejected Duterte’s appeal, saying in so many words that withdrawal by the Philippines from the ICC did not take away the Court’s authority over the case. Otherwise, it would have run counter to the purpose of the ICC, which is to put an end to impunity. The decision also put to rest speculations and disinformation about Duterte coming home.

On Thursday, April 23, the Court’s three-women pre-trial chamber unanimously ruled that there are “substantial grounds to believe that Mr. Duterte is criminally responsible for the crimes charged… as an indirect co-perpetrator, and/or for ordering and/or inducing, and/or for aiding and abetting the commission of the crimes” pursuant to the Rome Statute.

He will go to trial. And once the trial starts, Duterte will be required to appear in court.

Researcher Jodesz Gavilan compared the lengths of detention of other ICC detainees. Going by their length of stay thus far, it appears that Duterte will be in for a long wait.

While all this was happening in The Hague, Duterte’s daughter Sara, the vice president, was the target of serious allegations in the impeachment hearing of the House justice committee. If you want to keep abreast of the latest, be sure to read the following stories:

• AMLC says Sara Duterte got P14.8M from Samuel Uy, tagged ‘drug lord’ by critics
• Sara Duterte impeachment: Trillanes links VP’s family to ‘drug lord’ payouts
• Rappler Recap: What the impeachment hearing revealed about Sara Duterte’s wealth
• Day 3 of Sara Duterte impeachment hearing focuses on alleged unexplained wealth
• Money trail: How exactly was VP Sara’s P125M exhausted in less than 24 hours?

The big questions are whether this will prosper in the Senate, what political horse-trading will happen, and ultimately, whether this second attempt to impeach her will succeed. Amid all this tempest, it became evident that if there is one thing Sara won’t take sitting down, however, it’s the accusation that she struggled in law school 🙂.

Will the revelations and allegations against the Vice President affect her popularity and trust ratings, or will she, like her father, retain a strong base of supporters, all the way to 2028, when presidential elections will once again be held?

The Dutertes are not the only ones who have hogged the spotlight. On the other side of the political fence are the Marcoses, as rumors about the President’s health and supposed death swirled, prompting him to debunk them by literally flexing some muscle. 

Then there’s his cousin, former speaker Martin Romualdez, who had visibly lost some weight when he read his statement refuting insinuations against him pertaining to corruption of the budget. He named Senator Chiz Escudero and his own ally, former congressman Zaldy Co, as being “instrumental” in the questionable budget decisions that were made. 

Co has since been arrested by Czech authorities, but there’s been no talk about deportation or him being brought home. Can you imagine how messy things can become if and when he begins to talk here, in person? The Palace went on offense, asking if Co is ready to tell the truth. The same question can be asked of the President.

Notice, too, how Romualdez made no mention of his cousin even as he alluded to the executive branch? 

“That is why command responsibility is far more logically relevant in the executive branch, where there is actual supervision, operational control, and implementation on the ground, than in a collegial legislative body whose constitutional role is deliberation and appropriation,” he said. Veiled threat there?

Romualdez has yet to explain property acquisitions, however, including those made by close associates like lawyer and Upsilon Sigma Phi fratmate, Jose Raulito Paras. Last we checked, Paras had left the country.

Ombudsman Boying Remulla joined the fray when he announced that they had asked for a precautionary hold departure order against Romualdez and that plunder charges were being readied against him, Co, and even Escudero in connection with flood control corruption. If moves are being broadcast like this, ahead of actual implementation, you sense that something’s afoot. It just doesn’t feel right, does it?

Let me know what you think. Better still, share with us information you might have picked up or gathered along the way via [email protected] and we’ll look into it. Let’s try to put the pieces of this political puzzle together.

Till Thursday after next!

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Balikatan 2026: 17,000 troops in ‘biggest’ edition of PH-US war games yet

Who really owns Sunwest? Prosecutors zero in on Zaldy Co

– Rappler.com

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