Palace: Marcos to choose law over friendship in Duterte’s ICC case
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and former President Rodrigo Duterte — Photos from the Presidential Communications Office.
MANILA, Philippines — “Friend or the law? The President will still choose the law.”
This was Malacañang’s response to former presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo’s remark that reconciliation between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and the Dutertes hinges on Marcos taking steps to bring detained former President Rodrigo Duterte back to the Philippines.
READ: Does Marcos want to make peace with Dutertes? ‘Yes, I don’t like conflicts’
At a briefing on Wednesday, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Marcos’ willingness to make peace with the Dutertes would not come at the expense of breaking the law.
“The president will not allow himself to be controlled or dictated to when it comes to wrongdoing. He will not turn his back on or bend the law just to serve the personal interests of a few,” she said.
“The President will not break the law just for the sake of reconciliation,” she added.
This was also Castro’s response to concerns from some political analysts that a potential reconciliation could undermine efforts to hold the Dutertes accountable, especially with Vice President Sara Duterte facing an impeachment trial in the Senate this July.
Former President Duterte is currently detained at The Hague and facing charges of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court (ICC). The Dutertes said Marcos should be held accountable for allowing the arrest of their father and his eventual transfer to the ICC.
READ: Marcos on erring officials: `I want to be respected but fear is better’
In a podcast on Monday, Marcos was asked whether or not he was willing to reconcile with the Dutertes.
Marcos responded, “Yes. I don’t like conflicts. What I want is to get along with everyone.”
“I already have a lot of enemies; I don’t need more. What I need are friends,” he added.
Seemingly caught off guard by the question, Marcos explained that his main priorities are stability, peace, and being able to do their jobs in government.
“That’s why I’m always open to things like that. I’m always open to any approach like, ‘Come on, let’s work together,” he added.
The Dutertes have not issued any comment on the matter as of writing.
Marcos and Vice President Duterte ran under the UniTeam banner in the 2022 national elections. However, their political alliance was fractured, which became evident when Vice President Duterte resigned from her post as education secretary last year.
Speculation about their falling out intensified when Vice President Duterte revealed that she had instructed someone to kill Marcos, his wife, and House Speaker Martin Romualdez if she were ever assassinated.
Former President Duterte has repeatedly accused President Marcos of illegal drug use. He once said during a political sortie that by the age of 80, Marcos would probably be “no longer moving.”
Following her father’s arrest in March, Vice President Duterte criticized Marcos’ ability to lead and think clearly.
During the 88th Araw ng Dabaw celebration in Davao City on March 18, Mayor Sebastian Duterte cursed Marcos and accused him of being ungrateful.
Mayor Duterte claimed that while former President Duterte permitted the burial of the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, President Marcos Jr. repaid the gesture by allowing the arrest of his father./mcm
