THE haste with which former president Rodrigo Duterte was arrested and surrendered to the International Criminal Court (ICC) on March 11 was phenomenal. The feeling of euphoria over the success in bringing him to The Hague to stand trial for alleged crimes against humanity was overwhelming.
Several days later, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla was interviewed on "On Point," a television program hosted by Pinky Webb. During the interview, Webb asked Remulla "who really was on top of this" and if he was alone in "planning everything," referring to Duterte's arrest and transfer to The Hague. Remulla humbly declined to take credit and declared that it was a "group effort" by him, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., National Security Adviser Eduardo Año and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. When Webb asked if it was a small group, Remulla confirmed it. It had to be so because, he said, one "cannot plan an operation like this and involve too many people."
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