The legal counsel of former President Rodrigo Duterte requested the Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to indefinitely adjourn all legal proceedings in his case for alleged crime against humanity.

The request signed by Duterte's counsel Nicholas Kufman noted that "Duterte is not fit to stand trial as a result of cognitive impairment in multiple domains".

"Duterte’s condition will not improve and, for this reason, the Pre-Trial Chamber must adjourn all legal proceedings in his case indefinitely," it stated.

"The Defence respectfully requests the Chamber to order that all legal proceedings, including the hearing on the confirmation of charges, be adjourned indefinitely," the conclusion added.

The initial hearing on the case of Duterte is due to start on Sept. 23.

In a broadcast interview, Kristina Conti, assistant to counsel of the International Criminal Court (ICC) stressed that it is just the defense expert who claims that Duterte is unfit for trial noting the finding of the anonymous expert of the ICC detention facility who checked the condition of the former president.

"Around July the ICC detention facility become concerned and so they had an anonymous expert check on him, the findings of that expert is one, there was a decline in memory, second there was a decline in executive cognitive functioning and third there was a decline in... anyway it doesn't shows that he is not fit for trial," she said.

"So we think with that ICC detention facility expert refraining or not saying that he is unfit for trial, it appears that it was just only the defense expert who said he was unfit for trial," she added.

Conti also noted that the defense is consistently filing motions every month pertaining to Duterte's case.

"I have anticipated this because to be frank we could not see any defense that Duterte could raise during the trial, to win he has to stop the proceedings," she said. Robina Asido/DMS