Duterte to supporters: Relax, day of reckoning will come

MANILA, Philippines — Detained former president Rodrigo Duterte, through his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, reassured supporters that everything will be all right in the end.

Addressing Filipino supporters gathered outside the International Criminal Court (ICC) premises in The Hague on Friday, the Vice President said she was able to visit her father at his detention facility a few hours before his initial appearance before ICC judges.

“So, he said, tell them (his supporters): ‘Just relax. There is an end to everything. There is a day of reckoning.’ So, that’s his message to all of you,” the younger Duterte said in Filipino to their supporters.

The Vice President said her father was calm and appeared well-rested, and even told her that he had plenty of time to sleep and watch television.

“He said, tell them, ‘As a Filipino, I never surrendered my country to foreigners.’ And he also said that he never surrendered any Filipino citizen to foreigners. So, that’s his message and sentiments. He wanted all of you to remember that in all those years that he was in public service, he never surrendered our country, especially to foreign [powers],” the Vice President said.

The younger Duterte said her father also reiterated that he is in good condition though he is missing Filipino food.

The Vice President assured supporters that she will meet them again on March 23, when they may plan for her father’s 80th birthday celebration on March 28.

‘Admin’s biggest problem’

Meanwhile, the younger Duterte again took a swipe at the Marcos administration over the alleged persecution of her family.

“My fear is, do we still have a country by 2028? Because the way that we are going right now, the Philippines keeps on sinking and sinking,” she said.

“But let us put our trust in God. Soon we will see that everything that is happening right now has its purpose,” the VP added.

Duterte said she remains open to the possibility of running for president in 2028 elections but her focus right now is to provide support to her father.

“The best thing that we can do is to move forward. We cannot turn back time and retract our votes for him,” Duterte said, referring to President Marcos.

“So, I ran and became Vice President. Now they are after my father, president Duterte. But I am still the Vice President; that is their biggest problem right now. They would have to remove me from office in order to realize their goal to remain in their posts,” she added.

The younger Duterte is set to face an impeachment trial before the Senate in July.