Malacañang on Friday said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. does not need to monitor the legal proceedings of former President Rodrigo Duterte as he faces a confirmation of charges hearing before the International Criminal Court (ICC).

“The President does not need to monitor. As we said, the President is monitoring the interests of our country,” Palace Press Officer and Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said in a press briefing with the Malacañang Press Corps.

“He will not monitor, but of course, the President must be updated for everything that is happening. Because our fellow Filipinos are involved in this,” she added.

Castro also rejected allegations that Malacañang orchestrated Duterte’s arrest, which some supporters have described as “kidnapping.”

“We are the ones who are confused because they continue to make this narrative,” she said.

Castro cited a 10 March 2025 article from an international news outlet stating that the former president had been bracing for arrest.

“He was not scared of the ICC and told it to hurry up on its investigation,” she stressed.

“So, how can they say there is a kidnapping if former President Duterte is ready to be arrested if the warrant of arrest of ICC is already there?,” she added.

The ICC has scheduled Duterte’s confirmation of charges hearing on 23, 24, 26 and 27 February 2026 at Courtroom I in The Hague.

According to the court, “the Prosecution, the Defence and the Legal Representatives of Victims will make oral submissions before the judges to present their arguments on the merits.”

Duterte was arrested on 11 March 2025 and has since been under ICC custody at its headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands.