By Karen Lema and Neil Jerome Morales
MANILA – A quiet retirement for Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is unlikely if he makes way for successor Ferdinand Marcos Jr., but efforts to bring him to justice for thousands of murders in his ‘war on drugs’ seem unlikely to succeed.
Duterte’s daughter, Sara Duterte-Carpio, helped select Marcos by agreeing to become his vice presidential nominee, allowing the late dictator’s son to tap into her father’s tremendous support to stage a comeback for the disgraced one to seal the Marcos dynasty.
Though there was no formal quid pro quo, political pundits say it’s unlikely Marcos would risk cutting crucial bridges by allowing the International Criminal Court (ICC) to rule on Duterte over alleged execution killings in his war on drugs investigate.
Duterte, 77, will be stripped of the legal armor protecting him from legal action once he becomes a private citizen next month, making him an open target. He has unflinchingly said he will look for drug dealers after he retires and “shoot and kill them.”
At least 6,200 people were killed during Duterte’s six-year rule in the War on Drugs. Human rights groups and critics say law enforcement has summarily executed drug suspects, but police say those killed were armed and violently resisted arrest.
The ICC authorized an investigation into the killings in September, but temporarily suspended it in November at Manila’s request. The ICC did not immediately respond when asked for an update on the probe’s status.
“He will be safe and untouchable. Worse, even as an ex-president, he could still influence politics,” said Carlos Conde, senior Filipino researcher at Human Rights Watch.
Marcos has already hinted at what he might do with the ICC investigators during the campaign. “I will let them into the country, but only as tourists,” he said in January.
“We have a functioning judiciary, so I see no need for a foreigner to come and do the work for us,” Marcos said, echoing the position of Duterte, who has repeatedly said he will not cooperate with the ICC.
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POLITICS IN ITS DNA
However, Duterte would not only have to deal with the ICC, but also with victims’ families and human rights groups demanding accountability for the killings and other violations over the past six years.
Randy delos Santos, an uncle of high school student Kian delos Santos whose death in 2017 led to the rare convictions of cops in the drug war, hoped the ICC would reopen its investigations.
“There are so many families of victims of the drug war, not just me,” said Delos Santos, who cited many other cases debunking the government’s claims that the victims fought back.
Cristina Palabay of human rights group Karapatan said: “We are also preparing lawsuits against Duterte after he left office.”
Rodrigo Duterte and Marcos’ spokespersons did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Duterte has only hinted at his future plans. He said he will return to his hometown of Davao City this week, where he was mayor for more than two decades before becoming president in 2016.
“I will stay here in Davao. Even as a civilian, I will help you. Just like I promised when I first became mayor,” Duterte said after casting his ballot on Monday.
Earl Parreno, author of a Duterte biography entitled “Beyond Will & Power,” said he finds it difficult to imagine the president stepping out of politics entirely. “Will he really quietly retire?” he said.
Duterte could decide to run for local office in the 2025 midterm elections, Parreno said. It is not uncommon for former presidents in the Philippines to aspire to lower posts in office.
“If you have politics in your DNA, it would be difficult to stay away from it,” he said.
As befits Duterte, he didn’t mince his words when telling supporters about his plans after the presidency.
“I’m going to ride a motorcycle and walk around … and I’m going to look for drug dealers, shoot them and kill them,” he said.
(Reporting by Karen Lema; Editing by Ed Davies and Raju Gopalakrishnan)