Former President Rodrigo Duterte had been accused of exaggerating his alleged deteriorating health condition to evade conviction by the International Criminal Court (ICC)

Dahlia Cuartero, mother of Jesus Cuartero — who was killed in a buy-bust operation after allegedly resisting arrest — made the remark following findings by ICC medical experts that Duterte, while frail and elderly, remains competent to stand trial.

“We already knew then that he was really fit and was just being dramatic,” Cuartero said in Filipino.

“He really has the ability to stand trial; former President Roa Duterte is just overacting,” she added, claiming that she personally saw the 80-year-old former leader looking well inside the courtroom. 

She said that although a cane was offered to him, he refused to use it.

It remaines unclear, however, whether Cuartero was referring to the ICC courtroom in The Hague, the Netherlands, as qualified families of victims are expected to participate in the proceedings following a successful application.

The medical experts’ report has yet to be made public, but counter-submissions from both the defense and the prosecution confirmed that the panel found Duterte competent to stand trial.

This contradicts claims by his lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, who told the ICC that Duterte is suffering from cognitive impairment and should therefore be released from detention.

Kaufman argued that Duterte’s condition makes it impossible for him to meaningfully contribute to his own defense, rendering his participation in the proceedings ineffective.

As early as June, Kaufman petitioned the ICC to grant Duterte interim release, citing his advanced age and alleged debilitating health condition, including memory loss.

He later questioned the panel’s unanimous findings, citing what he described as internal inconsistencies in the conclusions of individual experts, which he said “undermine the overall weight” of the findings.

Kaufman subsequently asked the  ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I to allow the same panel to determine whether Duterte still poses a risk of obstructing the proceedings espite his frail health.

This, he said, would help establish whether Duterte’s cognitive state “would permit him to flee the ongoing judicial proceedings, to intimidate witnesses, or to commit crimes.”