MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is glad to have served as an instrument to the renewed relationship of former President Rodrigo Duterte and his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio.
This was the Chief Executive’s response after Duterte-Carpio thanked him for the “forgiveness” between her and her father, according to Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro.
“Glad I could help,” Castro quoted President Marcos as saying.
Meanwhile, Castro added that it would have been more appropriate for Duterte-Carpio to first thank her father, pointing out that any interaction between her and her father in The Hague was a direct result of the case against Duterte related to alleged extrajudicial killings.
“Mas maganda po siguro kung magpasalamat muna si VP Sara sa kanyang ama mismo, kay dating pangulong Rodrigo Duterte. Dahil kung siya man po ay nagkaroon ng pagkakataon, nagkaroon ng oras kasama ang kanyang ama, ito ay dahil sa kasong EJK,” Castro said.
“Kung hindi po naganap, at hindi nagawa sinasabing mga aksyon patungkol sa war on drugs at walang nag-complain, hindi rin naman sila magkakaroon ng pagkakataon na makapunta sa The Hague,” she added.
Duterte-Carpio, in an interview from The Hague in Netherlands, thanked President Marcos for being the reason for her renewed relationship with former President Duterte.
“This really is ironic, but I have to thank Bongbong Marcos because there was forgiveness between me and [former President Duterte] for all that has happened in our lives,” Duterte-Carpio said.
“We have that relationship now–a father-daughter relationship since we cannot discuss anything legal anymore because it is understood inside that only the lawyers can discuss legal matters with the former president,” she added.
“We only discuss family [matters] and this has been one of the longest meetings I have had with the former president. Growing up, he was always busy with work, he was always busy with the country,” she further said.
Duterte is facing trial before the International Criminal Court (ICC) over alleged crimes against humanity. His arrest by the ICC came despite earlier pronouncements by the Marcos administration that it won’t cooperate with the international body./PN
