"Let's call a spade a spade" - Senator Bong Go says surrender of Duterte to ICC was deliberate, questions legality and motives behind arrest

PHILIPPINES, April 12 - Press Release
April 11, 2025

"Let's call a spade a spade" - Senator Bong Go says surrender of Duterte to ICC was deliberate, questions legality and motives behind arrest

Senator Christopher "Bong" Go pulled no punches during Thursday's Senate Committee on Foreign Relations hearing, branding the arrest and surrender of former President Rodrigo Duterte to the International Criminal Court (ICC) as a calculated move--executed with suspicious speed and shrouded in unanswered legal questions.

"Let's call a spade a spade. Gusto talaga nilang i-surrender sa ICC si Tatay Digong," said Senator Go in a manifestation delivered during the hearing presided over by Senator Imee Marcos. "Wala na pong palusot. Halatang-halata. Mabilis pa sa alas kwatro ang kilos nila."

Held on April 10, the hearing was the third in a series of public inquiries into Duterte's sudden transfer to The Hague, despite the Philippines' formal withdrawal from the Rome Statute in 2019. Appearing before the Senate were key officials who had previously declined to attend: Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Gen. Rommel Marbil, and others.

"Madam Chair, marami pong tanong ang hindi pa rin nasasagot. Kung hindi kinikilala ng gobyerno ang ICC, bakit biglang sinunod ang utos nito?" he asked. "Ginamit lang bang palusot ang Interpol (International Criminal Police Organization)? E wala namang Red Notice. Bakit parang palihim at minadali ang lahat?"

Senator Go emphasized that according to Interpol's own website, eleven Filipino nationals currently have Red Notices--but none were subjected to the kind of swift and secretive action that Duterte endured.

"Labing-isa ang may Red Notice pero wala tayong naririnig. Bakit ngayon, sa kaso ni Tatay Digong, parang biglang naging masunurin ang mga otoridad?" said Senator Go. "May mga warrant d'yan na ilang taon nang hindi naipapatupad. Pero ito, katorse oras lang, tapos na."

The senator recounted how even he and even Vice President Sara Duterte were barred entry into Villamor Airbase when they sought to check on the former president's condition.

"Noong March 11, pinababa kami sa sasakyan sa gate. Si VP Sara, isang abogado at anak pa ng dating Pangulo, hindi pinapasok. Anong klaseng pagtrato 'yan?" Senator Go asked. "Ngayon, kayo nandito sa Senado at maayos kayong tinanggap. Sana marunong din kayong gumalang."

Senator Go described Duterte as a fragile man who no longer poses a flight risk, underscoring the cruelty of sending an ailing former head of state to a foreign country without honoring his basic rights to get medical treatment, consult the legal counsel of his choice which includes VP Sara Duterte who is more importantly, his daughter and immediate family.

"Harmless na po si Tatay Digong. Hirap na s'yang maglakad, pati pagtali ng medyas at sintas, hindi n'ya magawa. Ang sakit pong makita na 'yung taong ibinuhos ang buong buhay sa serbisyo ay pinabayaan sa banyagang lupa," he said. "Lahat tayo may tatay o lolo. Lahat tayo may minamahal na matatanda. Kung ganyan tratuhin ang isang dating Pangulo, paano pa kaya ang karaniwang Pilipino?"

Senator Go also raised a red flag on what seemed to be "selective implementation" of international warrants and the apparent double standard applied to Duterte's case.

"Kung wala kayong kinalaman sa operasyong ito, sino ang nag-utos? Sino ang nagdesisyong ipasok si Tatay Digong sa eroplano papunta sa ICC? 'Wag n'yo kaming gawing tanga. Alam naming may nagmaniobra," he said.

Justice Secretary Remulla, in his statement, claimed there was "no other option" but to comply with the ICC warrant, even if no extradition proceedings were initiated.

Remulla confirmed that he authorized the serving of the ICC's warrant on Duterte and approved the subsequent flight to The Hague. Remulla stated, "I will admit it that I gave the clearances to--number one, serve the warrant of arrest as I saw it, as I deem fit. And number two, to fly him to The Hague, to be surrendered under Section 17 of Republic Act 9851," he added.

But retired Supreme Court Justice Adolfo Azcuna warned that Duterte's abrupt surrender without local court proceedings may constitute an "abuse of process," potentially challengeable in the ICC itself.

Senator Go seized on this inconsistency, saying due process had been trampled.

"Hindi tayo mga abogado lahat, pero malinaw naman--may nilabag. Hindi p'wedeng basta na lang dakpin ang isang mamamayan, lalo na't dating Pangulo, nang walang malinaw na basehan. Saan sa batas nakasaad 'yan?" he asked. "Lumalabas tuloy na hindi lang nila tinanggalan ng dangal si Tatay Digong, kundi tinanggalan din ng dignidad ang buong bansa."

As he concluded his manifestation, Senator Go issued a firm call to return Duterte to the Philippines and let the country's own judicial system take its course.

"Kung may pananagutan man si Tatay Digong, dito n'ya harapin. May korte tayo. May batas tayo. At higit sa lahat, Pilipino ang dapat humusga," he said. "Pilipino ang nakaramdam ng kanyang liderato--ang ginhawa sa gabi, ang takot na nawala, ang respeto sa gobyerno na unti-unting naibalik. Kaya Pilipino rin ang dapat magpasya kung may pagkukulang s'ya, hindi banyaga."

Senator Go ended with a plea: "Ang tanong ngayon, simple lang--maibabalik pa ba si Tatay Digong? Please, bring him home. Huwag nating hayaang sa banyagang lupain pa s'ya mawalan ng hininga. Dito s'ya nabuhay, dito s'ya lumaban, dito s'ya dapat bumalik."