Former Defense Secretary and senatorial candidate Gilbert ‘Gibo’ Teodoro said the government should focus on capacitating its local institutions to fortify the country’s legal system instead of being under the authority of a foreign entity like the International Criminal Court (ICC).
During an interview with One News’ The Chiefs, Gibo Teodoro recalled that when he held the highest position in the Department of National Defense, the department opposed the country’s accession to the Rome Statute of the ICC. The 1998 statute established four core international crimes. These are genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression.
Gibo Teodoro, a lawyer and the 1989 Bar topnotcher, believes that domestic institutions should be resolving national issues and not foreigners “judging you on what is right or wrong”.
“This is a national issue (and) we should focus on strengthening our institutions,” Teodoro said. “We must work on this first.”
On allowing ICC representatives to come to the Philippines, Gibo Teodoro said that the State must first “see where they operate and what bounds they are operating”. (www.gibo.ph)
