Manila [Philippines], April 6: Speaking on the phone to his daughter from a prison cell in the Netherlands, former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he could die at any time and wanted to return home.
According to the Philippine Daily Inquirer on April 6, former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte wanted the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague (Netherlands) to try him quickly, saying that he could die at any time and wanted to take his last breath in the Philippines.
The information was given by his daughter, Vice President of the Philippines Sara Duterte, during an interview with reporters in The Hague on April 5.
"He's very happy today," she said of her father, who is currently in custody but can still speak to her by phone.
"And then he kept repeating it so I told him 'I understand where you're coming from', and I completely agree with the urgency with which he wants to come back to the Philippines," said Sara Duterte.
He said he was old and could die at any time, so he wanted to take his last breath in his own country.
Vice President Duterte said she assured her father that his legal team was working every day to resolve the case. She said her father also said: "Everything I do is for the country. Whether this is acceptable or not, that is my statement."
The vice president said her father is receiving full medical care at the ICC detention facility.
Mr. Duterte was arrested at Manila airport on March 11 after returning from Hong Kong. He was then taken to the Netherlands to be handed over to the ICC to face trial on charges of crimes against humanity related to his bloody anti-drug campaign during his presidency (2016-2022).
According to official Philippine government figures, his administration's war on drugs has left at least 6,000 people dead. However, human rights watchdogs estimate the death toll in the war on drugs to be between 12,000 and 30,000 between 2016 and 2019.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
