Former President Rodrigo Duterte said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has "nothing to do" with the International Criminal Court's (ICC) investigation into the drug war during the previous administration.

In an interview with Davao-based reporters late Saturday evening, the former president cleared his successor amid rumors that ICC personnel are already in the Philippines to investigate the "war on drugs" that has led to the deaths of thousands of Filipinos in the country.

Duterte underscored that the ICC has been interfering with countries' sovereignty for a long time, even before Marcos Jr. became the president.

"It is the ICC interfering in our private affairs, in the sense that it intrudes into the sovereignty of the other countries. Marcos, I am not in any way, dragging him into the picture. That ICC has been around for a long time," Duterte said.

"If there is anything that I did, it was because I did it for my country," he said, referring to his anti-drug campaign.

Duterte further added that he does not mind if ICC officials come to the country to investigate the killings during his administration.

"I don't care if they are here to stay, to investigate, to stay here forever, or to stay here for sightseeing. Tingnan ko lang kung what can they can come up with, then sagutin ko sila (Let's see what they can come up with, and then I'll respond to them)," Duterte said.

When asked about the continuing drug problem in the country despite the bloody campaign during his administration, Duterte said it's everywhere. However, he said he's not that privy about the current situation of the drug problem in the country now.

Duterte withdrew the country's membership from the ICC in March 2019. However, the ICC began investigating Duterte's "war on drugs" in 2016.

The Philippines requested that the probe be placed on hold in November 2021.

However, in July 2023, the ICC denied the nation's grounds for appeal after announcing in January 2023 that it would resume its investigation.

After Duterte ended his term in 2022, Marcos said the Philippines has "no intention" of rejoining the ICC.

But Marcos recently acknowledged that he's considering rejoining the court since certain politicians have asked the new administration to cooperate with the investigation.

Former Duterte spokesperson Harry Roque said in one of his newspaper columns last year that ICC agents had begun visiting the Philippines following the Marcos administration's easing its position on cooperating with the tribunal.