MANILA, Philippines – PINALAGAN ng Malakanyang ang pahayag ng defense lawyer ni dating Pangulong Rodrigo “Digong” Roa Duterte sa International Criminal Court pre-trial chamber na hangad ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. na i-neutralize ang una at ang dungisan ang legasiya nito.
Sinabi ni ICC defense lawyer Nicholas Kaufman sa unang pagdinig sa confirmation of charges laban kay Digong Duterte, tinukoy ang isang phone call kung saan ipinagyayabang ng isang partido na kaya niyang magpadala ng mga testigo sa ICC habang sinisiguro ang makatuwirang pagtanggi ni Pangulong Marcos.
“Kaufman has the temerity to accuse President Marcos of trying to neutralize Duterte’s legacy. That is preposterous,” ang resbak na tugon ni Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary at Palace Press Officer Claire Castro.
“He seems to be the one suffering from severe cognitive impairment, and not his client, because he tremendously forgets the timeline, since the crimes against humanity cases were filed before the International Criminal Court in 2017, when President Marcos, Jr. was still a private citizen,” ang diing pahayag ni Castro.
“Kaufman does not offer a clear defense for his client’s alleged extrajudicial killings, which reportedly happened during Duterte’s time as mayor,” aniya pa rin.
“In addition, one of the counsels, Silvestre Bello III, admitted that Duterte killed someone by throwing him out of a helicopter. He should learn the facts of his case rather than focus on political rhetoric,” giit nito.
Sa opening statement kasi ni Nicholas Kaufman, legal counsel ni Duterte, sa confirmation of charges hearing, araw ng Lunes, ibinunyag nito ang isang transcript ng tawag sa telepono.
Dito, isang hindi pinangalanang indibidwal umano ang kumokontrol sa mga testigo.
“One of these parties was boasting—boasting about how he was acting as the silent partner of President BBM (Marcos), managing a scheme to funnel witnesses to this court while all the time ensuring that he could guarantee President BBM’s plausible deniability,” ayon kay Kaufman.
“So it is indeed the defense’s case that President Marcos Jr. set out to neutralize Rodrigo Duterte and his legacy,” aniya pa rin.
Samantala, nahaharap si Digong Duterte sa tatlong bilang ng crimes against humanity kaugnay ng kanyang madugong anti-narcotics campaign.
Ayon sa tala ng pamahalaan, nasa 6,200 ang nasawi sa operasyon, ngunit aabot sa 30,000 ang pagtataya ng mga human rights organizations. Kris Jose
