Former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte on Tuesday maintained a stance on his bloody war against drugs campaign and said he is willing to get imprisoned for it.
Duterte made the remark following the decision of the International Criminal Court pre-trial court (ICC-PTC) to resume the probe into the alleged crimes and human rights abuses during his administration's anti-drug campaign.
"You know ICC, you want me to go to prison? I will. As a matter fact, I did it [drug war campaign] as a matter of principle. I would die for it and go to prison and rot there until kingdom come. That's a matter of principle to me," he said during an interview with Sonshine Media Network International's (SMI) Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa.
The former president raised the question "When was it a crime for a head of state to threaten criminals?"
"Sinabi ko if you will destroy my country, I will kill you. Is there a law against a president uttering such hostile words? When was it wrong to say do not our children because I will kill you," he lamented.
Duterte said he previously ordered an "all-out war" against drug criminals.
"And if it resulted into killing... Well, I'm sorry but that is how the game is played. There's always a confrontation. Do not make us believe that these criminals are innocent," he added.
In the same interview, the former president asserted that the chamber can not just "intrude" and start investigating the country's cases.
"If you do not have a permission from state or from congress or from the president, you have no business conducting investigation here," he claimed.
Earlier, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin 'Boying' Remulla called the chamber's decision an "insult" to the country as he insisted that the judicial system here is "functioning."
Meanwhile, Chief Presidential legal counsel Juan Ponce Enrile said he would "cause the arrest" of the ICC prosecutors if they come to the Philippines.
In the latest data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), a total of 6,201 individuals died during the anti-drug operations while 311,686 were arrested.
