What will happen if Rodrigo Duterte wins as Davao City mayor amid ICC detention?
Former president Rodrigo Duterte, who's currently detained in The Hague amid his crimes against humanity case before the International Criminal Court, is poised to stage a comeback as Davao City mayor.
What will happen if he emerges victorious amid his detainment, being thousands of miles away from Philippine soil?
Commission on Elections chairman George Garcia, in an interview with the media on the night of May 12, said there has been no issuance yet to suspend Duterte's proclamation should he win.
"Wala kasi tayong issue ng kahit anong order to suspend proclamation," Garcia said. "Sa atin pong rules, hangga't wala pong order to suspend proclamation, ang isa pong kandidato, kahit na may kaso, ay mapoproklama."
He, however, noted that someone filed a complaint regarding Duterte's would-be proclamation.
"Kung 'di tayo nagkakamali, I think it was filed yesterday, noong Sabado o noong Friday. Wala pa 'yung raffle, wala pa tayong action o division ng Comelec man lang, answer o kung anuman," Garcia said, adding it's likely that they couldn't take action about it just yet.
Asked what happens if the ICC won't allow Duterte to take his oath of office as mayor, Garcia noted that it's in the hands of the Department of Interior and Local Government, in accordance with the Local Government Code.
"Kami po, as far as we're concerned, hanggang doon lang kami sa proclamation," he said. "Basta maproklama na siya, matatapos na ang jurisdiction ng Commission on Elections."
"Kung makakaupo 'yung isang tao, kung siya ay nakapanumpa o hindi, ang DILG, base sa local government code, ang in charge sa ganyan."
Based on 80.82% of election returns as of May 13, 8:02 a.m., Duterte is the presumptive winner of the Davao City mayoral race with 537,775 votes. His closest rival, his former Cabinet secretary Karlo Nograles, got 64,886 votes.
Duterte's son Baste, the outgoing Davao City mayor, is also expected to win the vice mayoral race, with 528,697 votes. Independent candidate Bernie Al-ag is lagging behind with 63,353 votes.
Duterte has been at the ICC since March 12.
He was arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on March 11 following a warrant of arrest issued by the ICC via the International Criminal Police Organization.
He has been accused of being an "indirect co-perpetrator for the crime against humanity of murder pursuant to Article 7 (1)(a) of the Roman Statute."
Specifically, he was allegedly involved in the murder of at least 19 persons reported to be drug pushers or thieves who were killed by members of the Davao Death Squad in various locations in or around Davao City between 2011 and 2016, as well as the murder of at least 24 alleged criminals who were killed by or under the supervision of members of the Philippines law enforcement at various locations in the country between 2016 and 2019 during his term as president.
He could be the first Asian former head of state to be indicted by the ICC.
His pre-trial hearing is on Sept. 23, 2025. If the charges against him are confirmed, it could be months before the case eventually goes on trial, and years before a final judgment is rendered.
