The Cabinet officials who attended the Senate inquiry on the March 11 arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte by the International Criminal Court (ICC) have already provided “sufficient answers” to the queries, Malacañang said Wednesday.
In a press briefing, Palace Press Officer and Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said the administration has nothing to hide.
“There is nothing hidden, because the long duration of the first hearing was enough for our Cabinet officials to say what needed to be said regarding the surrender of former President Duterte to the ICC,” she said in Filipino.
Senator Imee Marcos, elder sister of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., earlier revealed that she received a letter from the Palace informing her that Cabinet officials would skip her committee’s next hearings tackling Duterte’s ICC detention, citing “executive privilege.”
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin sent a refusal letter dated 31 March to Senator Marcos, stating that further participation by executive officials may no longer be necessary because they have “candidly provided all information” elicited by the Committee during the last hearing.
The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, chaired by Imee, is set to conduct a second hearing on Duterte’s arrest on 3 April.
Castro said the Cabinet members have already made their decision.
“As decided, our Cabinet members and officials are aware that, in their view, what they have already shared — the facts and data — in the previous hearing with Senator Imee Marcos are sufficient. We believe this is adequate, considering that she has already made her preliminary findings,” Castro told reporters.
“So, that’s it, and we can’t say that the questions were not addressed, especially if they were in aid of legislation. Most likely, the responses from our Cabinet officials are sufficient for her to draft the law regarding this matter,” she added.
When asked if the Palace would reconsider allowing Cabinet officials to participate in future hearings, Castro said Bersamin has not yet commented on the matter.
“Let’s see what happens; if he is asking for reconsideration, there has been no response from ES Bersamin yet,” she noted.
Meanwhile, Senator Imee Marcos lamented that completing only one inquiry on Duterte's ICC arrest is not enough.
She said Malacañang’s reasons remain insufficient to decline the Senate’s invitation.
“The Committee is keen to provide the executive officials an opportunity to clarify issues and questions that surfaced last hearing,” she said.
“There are likewise new pieces of information that the Committee has received, and in the interest of fairness and transparency, the Committee would like to give executive officials a chance to explain their side relative to these new pieces of information,” Imee added.