MANILA — The dispute between Davao City’s Conf. Paolo “Polong” Duterte and Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla escalated Friday after the lawmaker challenged Remulla, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., and members of the First Family to undergo hair follicle drug testing amid a heated exchange over alleged arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The challenge came after Remulla dismissed Duterte’s claims that the ICC had supposedly issued arrest warrants against Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go and two former police officers, saying authorities had received no information or official documents supporting the allegation.
Remulla also suggested that Duterte may have been “high” when he made the remarks.
Duterte responded through a social media post, denying the insinuation and turning the challenge back on the administration.
“Ako pa talaga ang sinabihan mong ‘high’ at ‘sabog,’ Secretary Jonvic Remulla? Ako? O baka nagkamali ka lang ng tinutumbok at ang gusto mo talagang sabihin ay iyong mga nasa Malacañang?” said Duterte.
The congressman then proposed that all parties involved submit to drug testing to settle the issue.
“Kung gusto mo talagang malaman kung sino ang “high” at sino ang “sabog,” simple lang naman ang solusyon. Magpa-hair follicle drug test tayo. Sama mo na ang boss mo at asawa’t anak niya. Para isang testing na lang, tapos ang usapan,” he added.
The exchange stemmed from Duterte’s earlier assertion that the ICC had issued warrants against Go and two former police officers based on information he received from what he described as a “highly reliable source.”
However, the government maintained that it had not received any official communication from the ICC confirming the existence of such warrants.
The controversy comes as former president Rodrigo Duterte faces crimes against humanity charges before the ICC over deaths linked to his administration’s anti-drug campaign.
Paolo Duterte also accused the Marcos administration of allegedly using the international tribunal for political purposes, an allegation that Malacañang has denied.
As of Friday, government officials continued to maintain that no official notice from the ICC regarding the alleged warrants cited by Duterte had been received by Philippine authorities./PN
