Paolo Duterte 鈥擨nquirer photo/Lyn Rillon
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� The Office of the House Secretary General on Tuesday confirmed that Davao City Rep. Paolo 鈥淧ulong鈥� Duterte, eldest son of former President Rodrigo Duterte, sought clearance to travel to at least 16 countries in under two months.
A copy of the travel clearance signed by Speaker Martin Romualdez granted the younger Duterte鈥檚 permission to travel from March 20 to May 10 supposedly to go to Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy and Singapore.
In an interview with the Inquirer, House Secretary General Reginald Velasco explained that lawmakers normally did not have to explain their reasons for travel as long as they used their own money.
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Velasco also said that this type of request to visit multiple countries was not unprecedented, noting members of the House of Representatives can manifest only their intention to travel to these countries, but not necessarily go there.
Amendment
鈥淥urs is merely a ministerial duty. As long as they do not use government funds, such requests are normally approved,鈥� Velasco said. 鈥淭his request is an amendment of [Paolo Duterte鈥檚] earlier travel request [submitted March 12] where he asked for clearance to travel to the Netherlands and Japan.鈥�
Representative Duterte first sought clearance to leave the country after his father on March 11 was handed by the government to the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), which was implementing an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Netherlands.
Former President Duterte was flown to The Hague that same day and has since been detained there to face a charge of crime against humanity for murder in relation the bloody drug war that he waged during his term as mayor of Davao City and president of the Philippines from Nov. 1, 2011, to March 16, 2019.
Representative Duterte, unlike his sister, Vice President Sara Duterte, has yet to be seen in The Hague to visit their father.
The Vice President earlier said that family members had to identify several countries in their travel requests because they were unsure where the elder Duterte would be taken upon his arrest.
Sara鈥檚 own travel authority, issued by the Office of the President, covered trips to Germany, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands from March 11 to April 30.
During the former president鈥檚 arrest, there was speculation that the older Duterte could be presented to a court in Japan or South Korea鈥攖he closest ICC member states to the Philippines鈥攂efore he would be flown to The Hague.
The Inquirer sought Representative Duterte鈥檚 office for comment, but a member of his staff, Jojo Gamboa, said the Davao lawmaker could not be reached via Viber as he was forced to deactivate it following a hacking attempt.
Gamboa was referring to Representative Duterte鈥檚 March 17 statement, where he flagged a new Viber account activated using his personal number and warned against engaging with the account 鈥渁s the same was clearly made in an attempt to misrepresent myself.鈥�
With his travel documents approved, Representative Duterte will be out of the country for almost the entire duration of the local campaign period, which starts on March 28, for the May 12 elections. He is running for reelection for a third and final term as Davao City representative against Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA) Rep. Margarita Nograles, daughter of the late former Speaker Prospero Nograles.
Margarita鈥檚 brother, former Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, is facing former President Duterte in the mayoral race in Davao City.
In the past several years, Rep. Duterte became controversial due to his alleged links to the illegal drug trade, an allegation that had been investigated by the Senate and the House of Representatives.
In December 2024, Rep. Duterte expressed willingness to face a more comprehensive investigation from an 鈥渋mpartial and credible body,鈥� as long as it would not be based on hearsay testimony.
鈥淚 welcome any investigation to be conducted by an impartial and credible body, as I have nothing to hide. I remain committed to clearing our name and confident that the truth will expose the baseless nature of these accusations,鈥� Duterte said in a statement then.