Lagman not convinced of PBBM's basis for blocking ICC's drug war probe

Liberal Party (LP) president Edcel Lagman on Friday did not buy President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s position not to allow the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate his predecessor’s anti-drug campaign, citing properly “working” Philippine justice system as made evident by the acquittal of the former Senator Leila de Lima in her final drug case.

Lagman vehemently asserted that the much-belated exoneration of De Lima, a stalwart of LP, on the alleged fabricated drug charges made by former president Rodrigo Duterte does not “evince that the Philippine justice system is working for all drug offenders and victims.”

“As long as former President Rodrigo Duterte, the principal instigator of the drug-related extrajudicial killings, is not indicted before the proper Philippine court, the Philippine justice system still fails to work for all the perpetrators and their victims,” the Albay solon lamented.

Marcos on Thursday maintained his position to block the ICC’s investigation into the so-called extrajudicial killings committed by the administration of Duterte.

“This is something we should show the ICC. The judiciary is working properly, our investigative services are working properly,” Marcos said.

“Former Sen. De Lima has been acquitted. I don’t know what further comments there could be. She went through the process and then got acquitted,” the President pointed out.

However, Lagman countered that complementarity of a working justice system “cannot be invoked by the Philippines for exemption from the jurisdiction of the ICC in the case of the complaint for alleged crimes against humanity committed by Duterte and his principal cohorts.”

ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. France Castro also criticized Marcos’ attempt to use De Lima's case as a shield against ICC intervention, which she deemed a grave insult to the victims of the bloody drug war.

"Sen. De Lima's case is just one out of thousands of drug-related cases during Duterte's bogus drug war, most of which resulted in the death of the supposed suspects,” she said.

Castro argued that Marcos must authorize the ICC to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into Duterte’s drug war since the Filipinos deserve it, and it would address the full scope of human rights violations committed during the anti-drug operations.

“The ICC's involvement is crucial to ensure that all perpetrators, regardless of their position or influence, are held accountable for their actions," she lamented.

Roughly 7,000 people were killed in the anti-narcotics operations or "oplan tokhang" from 2016 to 2022 based on the government's data.

Local and international human rights organizations, however, estimated that the death toll exceeded 30,000, affecting predominantly low-income families and communities.

De Lima, a former Justice chief, was one of the fierce critics of Duterte’s brutal anti-drug campaign.
 
The former lawmaker was detained in 2017 after being accused of receiving P10 million from former Bureau of Corrections deputy director Rafael Ragos, allegedly sourced from the proceeds of the illegal drugs trade in the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City when she was Justice chief to fund her 2016 senatorial campaign.

Ealier this week, De Lima walked free from the third and last drug-related cases lodged against her after the Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court Branch 206 granted her demurrer to evidence.