PRESIDENTIAL Adviser on Poverty Alleviation Larry Gadon said the move of the Office of the Solicitor General to recuse itself from representing government officials in cases surrounding the arrest of former president Rodrigo Duterte has no adverse effect on its (arrest) legality.
The OSG’s recusal is technically plausible because that’s the position it took, as naturally expected, during the time of Duterte administration, he said.
“The Solicitor General (in reference to Menardo Guevarra) now is under pain of disciplinary sanction if he takes a turnabout stand due to legal ethics,” said Gadon, a former lawyer.
He recalled that the case challenging the Philippine’s withdrawal of its membership in the International Criminal Court was heard by the high tribunal during the Duterte administration.
“Hence the stand of the OSG maintaining that the ICC has no jurisdiction on the Philippines,” the anti-poverty presidential adviser said.
Besides, he said the OSG’s move to recuse itself was just a way to avoid legal ethics sanctions for taking a contradicting stand.
Furthermore, Gadon reiterated that the OSG’s recusal has no advantageous effect to Duterte citing various reasons.
He said the high court in July 2021 ruled that the Philippines is obliged to comply with ICC as far as the crimes committed prior to the withdrawal in 2019 are concerned.
Just last week, Gadon said the same high tribunal denied the request of the Duterte camp for a temporary restraining order saying that the petitioners “failed to establish a clear and unmistakable right for the immediate issuance of a TRO.”
“The TRO denial is an affirmation of its (high court) 2021 ruling that the Philippines is obliged to recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC prior or before the withdrawal,” the Malacañang official said.
By the way, he said, Guevarra wasn’t the OSG during the Duterte administration.
“Let me say this, the Duterte camp has no reason to rejoice over the OSG’s recusal,” Gadon pointed out.
Last week, he laughed off Sen. Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa’s claim that he felt betrayed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for breaking a promise that his administration wouldn’t cooperate with the ICC.
