Former president Rodrigo Duterte assured his supporters “there will be a day of reckoning for all,” a message relayed through Vice President Sara Duterte during her visit to him at the International Criminal Court (ICC) detention facility in Scheveningen.
“I told him a lot of people are crying. They are depressed, hurt, stressed about what happened and what is happening right now, and what is happening in the country. Then he (Rodrigo) said, ‘Tell them to relax,'” Sara told reporters in a mix of English and Filipino on Friday.
“Everything has an end. There will be a day of reckoning for all,” she added.
The former president is facing charges of crimes against humanity over his administration’s controversial drug war. He made his first appearance at the ICC pre-trial hearing via video conference, citing the long journey to The Hague and the significant time difference, according to ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah.
The Vice President also took the opportunity to thank her father’s supporters, insisting that his arrest reflects the government’s failure to address urgent national issues such as hunger, poverty, and corruption.
“We can feel your love, we can feel your anger. We can empathize with everyone’s rage about what happened,” Sara said.
“Let us not forget the real issues in our country and that is poverty, that is corruption, that is the failure of the government to answer the demands from the people about accountability and transparency and the failure of the government to address peace and security in our country,” she added.