Liberal Party (LP) president and Albay 1st District Rep. Edcel Lagman challenged President Marcos on Friday to prosecute former President Rodrigo Duterte for drug-related extrajudicial killings (EJKs) to prove that the Philippine justice system is indeed working for the Filipinos.
Lagman issued the statement in response to President Marcos saying that the recent acquittal of former senator and LP spokesperson Leila de Lima somehow bolstered the government’s position not to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC).
“The much belated acquittal of former Senator Leila De Lima of all the Duterte-fabricated drug charges against her does not evince that the Philippine justice system is working for all drug offenders and victims,” the LP leader said.
“As long as former President Rodrigo Duterte, the principal instigator of the drug related extrajudicial killings is not indicted before the proper Philippine court, the Philippine justice system still fails to work for all the perpetrators and their victims,” he added.
The ICC had been investigating the bloody drug war orchestrated by Duterte during his administration, which left thousands dead. The former president withdrew the Philippines’ membership in the organization. President Marcos maintained that the ICC has no jurisdiction over the country.
“Complementarity of a ‘working justice system’ cannot be invoked by the Philippines for exemption from the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court in the case of the complaint for alleged crimes against humanity committed by Duterte and his principal cohorts,” Lagman argued.
De Lima suffered almost seven years of political persecution under the Duterte administration for investigating drug-related killings in Davao City during her time as head of the Commission on Human Rights and Secretary of the Department of Justice (DOJ).
