“Too late the hero.”
This was how Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go described the Senate hearing of the Committee on Foreign Relations on Thursday led by Presidential sister Senator Imee Marcos on the illegal arrest of former president Rodrigo Duterte as the latter was already brought in The Hague, Netherlands and currently detained at the International Criminal Court’s (ICC’s) detention facility.
Go, a longtime aide of the former president, emphasized that the Philippines has a functioning justice system. While he acknowledged there is no issue with the former president attending Senate hearings daily, he questioned whether it would be possible to bring the former president back to the country.
“Mayroon naman tayong umiiral na hustisya sa bansa, mayroon naman tayong sariling mga batas at korte, Bakit pinayagan ng gobyerno na dakipin ang isang Pilipino sa sarili nating bayan? Walang problema sa akin mag hearing araw araw, pero ang tanong, maibabablik niyo pa ba si Tatay Digong? Yan ang tinatawag ko na “too late the hero’,” Go said.
Go stressed that all these hearings are useless if Duterte can’t be brought back.
“Useless lahat ng hearing na ito kung hindi na maibabalik si Tatay Digong. Pakiusap ko lang, kung kaya ninyo siyang dalahin doon in less than one day sa loob ng 13 oras, dapat kaya rin ninyo siyang ibalik dito sa lalong madaling panahon dahil nangungulila na ang Pilipino at hindi kayang tanggapin ang nangyari sa kanya,” Go said.
The senator also acknowledged the significant impact of the former president’s absence on the campaign of PDP-Laban, admitting that his arrest and transfer to The Hague have left their team at a disadvantage.
However, he stressed that they will continue their efforts, staying true to their mission of serving the Filipino people.
“Alam n’yo, sa totoo lang, malaking kawalan. Malaking kawalan po si former President Duterte. ‘Pag nandyan siya, talagang dinudumog po ang mga rallies ng PDP-Laban. Tsaka pinapakinggan po siya ng tao dahil marami po siyang nagawa para sa bayan. Tinitingala siya ng taumbayan, kaya malaking kawalan po sa amin,” said Go.
He described the current situation as a major setback, likening their struggle to being crippled without their strongest figure.
“Pilay po. Talagang napilayan po kami sa pagkawala ni former President Duterte. But life must go on. Limampu’t apat na araw na lang bago ang eleksyon, kailangan naming magtrabaho. Kaya po ako nandito ngayon,” he said.
