Vice President Sara Duterte on Wednesday urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to accelerate the trial of her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, warning that the 81-year-old former leader may not survive years of continued detention as he awaits judgment on crimes against humanity charges.

Iin a chance interview, Duterte said the family remains frustrated by the pace of proceedings, with the trial still scheduled to begin on 30 November despite her father's nearly 16 months in custody.

"That is too far along for us. We wanted an earlier trial date since he's been here one year and four months and nothing has happened," Duterte told reporters.

In April, ICC judges unanimously confirmed all charges against Duterte and committed him to trial, finding "substantial grounds" to believe he bore criminal responsibility for crimes against humanity linked to killings carried out during his anti-drug campaign. 

For the Duterte family, however, the concern is increasingly about time.

"We can only request and plead with them to speed up the trial because he is already 81 years old and he cannot afford to stay in detention for three, four, five years more," she said.

The Vice President disclosed that her father is currently dealing with an unspecified skin condition but is otherwise in stable health.

"He's doing okay except that he has a skin problem right now," she said, adding that detention facility medical personnel have been treating the condition with a medicated cream.

Beyond that, she said, the former president is experiencing only the "usual aches and pains of an 81-year-old man."

In previous court filings, his lawyers claimed the former president was suffering from a deteriorating cognitive condition that affected his memory, orientation and ability to engage in complex reasoning. The defense argued that his physical and mental condition impaired his ability to meaningfully participate in the proceedings and sought both a suspension of the case and his release from detention.

Judges, however, rejected those motions. In January, the ICC ruled that Duterte remained fit to participate in the proceedings, and in April upheld both the court's jurisdiction and the charges against him, paving the way for trial.

Asked about recent developments within the ICC, including changes involving the court's chief prosecutor, Duterte said she hoped officials would adhere to the principle that an accused person is presumed innocent.

"We hope that they will always be for the accused since there is a presumption of innocence always for an accused," she said.

Despite acknowledging that her father is now under the court's jurisdiction, the Vice President again criticized the circumstances surrounding his transfer to The Hague, repeating the family's long-standing claim that he was unlawfully taken from the Philippines.

"The moment that he was taken, he was kidnapped from the Philippines, and we are still angry now," she said.

The Marcos administration has maintained that it acted in accordance with its international obligations when it surrendered Duterte to the ICC in 2025.

The Vice President revealed that she had already discussed the possibility with her father and that he had left instructions in the event of his death while in custody.

"Of course, yes. There is always the possibility that he will pass inside the prison, That is why he gave his instructions in case he dies in prison," she said. 

"But of course, as a Filipino, as a daughter, we want him to die on Philippine soil," Duterte added.

The former president has remained in ICC custody since March 2025, while supporters continue to campaign for his release and victims' groups press for accountability over thousands of deaths linked to the government's anti-drug crackdown.