THE HAGUE, Netherlands – The prosecution team of the International Criminal Court (ICC) said on Wednesday, February 25, that its Philippine investigation was done independently and funded by a court-approved budget.

“The Office independently collects the information relevant to its investigations, identifies the individuals from whom it collects witness statements, and assesses the credibility, reliability, and relevance of all sources of information it requests and receives, and examines incriminating and exonerating evidence equally,” the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) told Rappler in a statement on Wednesday.

Rappler asked the OTP to respond to allegations of former soldiers that they delivered cash to former senator Antonio Trillanes IV allegedly to help fund the activities of ICC investigators when they came to the Philippines from 2023 to 2025.

The affidavit started circulating on the second day of the historic pre-trial hearing of former president Rodrigo Duterte at The Hague. It alleges that the ICC personnel’s hotel accommodations were paid for using money that supposedly came from resigned congressman Zaldy Co, who is at the center of the flood control corruption scandal that broke out last year.

Co, once one of the most powerful members of the House of Representatives, is charged in court but remains at large.

Cyberlibel

A fierce critic of the Dutertes, Trillanes is one of the first Filipinos who filed a complaint against Duterte at the ICC back when he was still president. Denying the ex-soldiers’ allegations, he said he would file cyberlibel complaints against them and their lawyer Levi Baligod.

Navy spokesperson Captain Marissa Martinez said on Wednesday that four of those who spoke at a press conference with Baligod on Tuesday, February 24, were never members of the Navy or the Marine Corps (two of the four claim to have been formerly in the Army, based on their affidavit). 

Without commenting on the presence of ICC investigators in the Philippines, the OTP told Rappler that their “activities are funded through the Court’s budget approved by the ICC Assembly of States Parties and subject to established oversight mechanisms.”

The Assembly of States Parties or ASP is the group of ICC member countries who voluntarily fund the court.

“The costs related to OTP prosecutions and investigations activities, including missions’ expenses are fully covered by this budget managed strictly by the Office in an independent and transparent manner, and in accordance with ICC financial rules and regulations,” said the OTP.

The affidavit identifies by name and photos the personnel who visited the Philippines, one of whom is supposedly Chantal Daniels who is OTP’s international cooperation adviser. This is not the first time that identities of alleged ICC investigators were outed to the public; at one point, Senator Imee Marcos even flashed their passports in a televised Senate hearing.

The OTP declined to comment on the identities.

“As a matter of policy, the Office does not comment on operational matters with respect to ongoing investigations and prosecutions. This is essential to protect the integrity of the investigations and operations, to ensure the safety and security of victims, witnesses, and all those with whom the Office interacts, as well as its staff,” said the OTP. – Rappler.com