SENATOR Robin Padilla and former Palace official Mocha Uson led supporters of the “Tay Kami Naman” movement to the Supreme Court on Monday, March 30, to submit a third batch of signatures, calling for the immediate release of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
The group filed approximately 60,000 additional signatures, bringing the total number of verified entries to 304,000 collected over the past four months from both local and overseas supporters.
The signature campaign aims to urge the High Tribunal to act immediately on pending habeas corpus petitions filed by the former president’s children. These petitions challenge the legality of Duterte’s arrest and his current detention under the custody of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Padilla, carrying a suitcase containing the documents, emphasized that the submission represents the voluntary appeal of citizens for the court to resolve the standing legal questions regarding the former leader’s detention.
“We are here to submit the collected signatures of citizens appealing for the High Court to decide on the pending petitions concerning [former] President Duterte,” Padilla told reporters outside the Supreme Court.
Joie Cruz, an organizer of the movement, noted that the campaign’s momentum continues to grow. This latest submission follows a second batch of 238,000 signatures filed earlier this month.
According to organizers, the Supreme Court has officially acknowledged receipt of the documents.
The former president remains in ICC custody, facing charges of crimes against humanity related to the anti-drug campaign during his administration. While the High Court has received the signatures, it has yet to issue a ruling on the habeas corpus petitions that could determine the next steps in Duterte’s legal battle.
On Saturday, March 28, the Duterte family launched a website for former President Rodrigo Duterte on his 81st birthday.
The family said the portal “is dedicated to the supporters whose belief, encouragement, and unwavering loyalty have carried our family through the years.”
