Pacquiao: Case filed against Duterte at ICC can hurt PH image

Sen. Manny Pacquiao. (File photo from AP)

Neophyte Sen. Manny Pacquiao warned on Thursday that the filing of a case against President Roridrigo Duterte at the International Criminal Court (ICC) could hurt the country’s image.

On Monday, lawyer Jude Sabio filed a complaint at the ICC at The Hague against Duterte and 11 others for allegedly committing crimes against humanity.

READ:Search Duterte, 11 others Duterte, 11 others accused of crimes against humanity before ICC

“Ang reaction ko dyan, sarili nating problema ito,” Pacquiao said in an interview over AksyonTV. “At tayo rin ang maapektuhan nito, tayo rin ang masisira, ang buong bansa natin ang masisira, ang sambayanang Pilipino ang masisira. Magiging bad image tayo sa ibang bansa, sa ibang tao. So ganun ang magiging sitwasyon nun.”

(“My reaction to that is that this is our own problem. And it’s us who will be affected, it’s us who will be destroyed, it’s the whole country that will be destroyed, it’s the Filipino nation that will be destroyed. We will have a bad image in other countries, with other people. So that’s what our situation will be.”)

The senator said the country and the people’s interest must come first before anyone’s vested interests.

“Common sense ba na hindi lang pansariling interest kung hindi kapakanan ng sambayanang Pilipino, kapakanan ng ating bansa,” Pacquiao, a staunch supporter of the President, said.

(“Let’s have the common sense to consider not our selfish interest but the well-being of the Filipino nation, the well-being of our country.”)

In another interview, Senate Majority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III also hit the filing of the case against Duterte, saying it was clearly meant to get media mileage.

Manila is hosting the Asean Summit this week.

Sotto insisted that the ICC had no jurisdiction over the case.

“Ang ICC ang nirereklamo dun at ang tinatalakay nila at ang jurisdiction nila ay kung may state-to-state na problema,” he said. “Kunwari tayo ang Pilipinas, yung lider mo o yung isang tao dito ay may ginawa laban sa mga taga Malaysia, pwede mong dalhin sa International Criminal Court.”

(“The complaints filed at the ICC and what it has juridiction over are state-to-state problems. For example, if the leader of the Philippines or anyone here did something from someone in Malaysia, then you can bring the case to the International Criminal Court.”)

“Pero kung ang nirereklamo nyo ay dito sa Pilipinas, yung lider e may mga pinatay na kababayan nya dito sa korte natin yun, wala sa ICC yun. Wala sa jurisdiction nila yun,” he added.

(“But if the complaint is against someone in the Philippines, for example, if the leader killed a countryman, that falls under courts, not the ICC. It’s not under its jurisdiction.”) /atm/rga

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