An independent panel of medical experts has found former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte fully fit to participate in pre-trial proceedings before the International Criminal Court (ICC), ending months of debate and legal wrangling over his health and cognitive capacity.

In a document dated December 18, ICC Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang informed Pre-Trial Chamber I that the panel unanimously concluded Duterte is capable of meaningfully exercising his procedural and fair trial rights. Based on these findings, the prosecution recommended that the proceedings move forward.

According to Niang, while Duterte is “frail and elderly,” the medical experts agreed that he retains the necessary mental capacities to take part in the ICC process, including the confirmation of charges hearing.

The panel found that Duterte can understand the charges and evidence against him, grasp the purpose, conduct, and potential consequences of the pre-trial proceedings, and properly instruct his legal counsel in preparing and presenting his defense.

“Upon completion of their assessments, Panel members individually reached the same overall conclusion that, while frail and elderly, Mr. Duterte nevertheless possesses the necessary capacities to meaningfully exercise his procedural and fair trial rights,” Niang stated in the filing.

The prosecutor emphasized that the findings were clear and unanimous, and urged the judges to treat the medical assessment as authoritative in determining that Duterte is fit to stand trial. If the three-judge Pre-Trial Chamber agrees with this conclusion, it may order the rescheduling of the long-delayed confirmation of charges hearing.

However, Duterte’s defense has challenged the prosecution’s interpretation of the medical report.

His lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, argued that the panel’s joint conclusion should not be considered conclusive due to what he described as internal inconsistencies.

In a separate 12-page submission, Kaufman said the experts relied on differing and, at times, conflicting methodologies, which he claimed undermines the reliability of their shared assessment.

“Such internal inconsistencies undermine the overall weight of the general joint conclusion on fitness,” Kaufman said.

The defense has requested an evidentiary hearing to allow both sides to question the medical experts directly about their conclusions, reasoning, and methods before the court makes a final determination.

As of now, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I has not issued a final ruling on Duterte’s request to suspend or delay the proceedings due to alleged “cognitive decline.”

Duterte faces charges of crimes against humanity in connection with his administration’s controversial war on drugs, which allegedly resulted in thousands of extrajudicial killings