‘Duterte beaming with pride for Sara’

MANILA, Philippines — Detained former president Rodrigo Duterte was “beaming with pride, but also feels for” Vice President Sara Duterte after she declared her presidential bid in 2028, according to her sister Veronica Duterte.

Recalling their father’s words, Veronica said, “No amount of adulation and honor could ever compensate for the misery and agony of being president.”

In 2021, the former president said women weren’t fit to lead the country. Sara is facing impeachment complaints for her alleged misuse of funds, among others.

The Duterte patriarch is detained in The Hague awaiting trial for crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Charges stemmed from his bloody drug war.

Veronica, popularly known as Kitty, visited the former president on Feb. 27 after the ICC wrapped up its hearings on confirmation of charges against him.

Meanwhile, Department of Justice spokesman Polo Martinez said no law prohibits the Philippines from coordinating with the ICC despite its withdrawal from the Rome Statute in 2019.

Martinez issued the statement after Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla admitted to meeting with ICC probers last year to discuss the protection of Filipino witnesses in Duterte’s case. Remulla was the justice secretary at the time. — Daphne Galvez