Marcos appeared on nationwide television around midnight shortly after Duterte was flown out and denied the allegations of the vice president, who has had a bitter falling out with him after their whirlwind political alliance as running mates in the 2022 elections crumbled.
In Hong Kong, Duterte told a gathering of flag-waving followers Sunday before he flew back to Manila that he was aware that an ICC warrant for his arrest has been issued and added he was ready to be locked up. "If this is my fate in life, it's OK, I'll accept it. I can't do anything if I get arrested and jailed," he said in an expletives-laced speech.
Duterte carved a political name decades ago with his violent approach to criminality and his profanities, which became a trademark of his political persona especially when threatening to kill drug dealers as part of his war on illegal drugs that left thousands dead in his long years in power.