A TikTok video claiming Vice President Sara Duterte is preparing documents for her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte's return to the Philippines on April 1, 2026, is false. Rappler's fact check found no evidence from her office or credible sources to support it. Duterte remains detained at the ICC in The Hague as his case proceeds.
A TikTok video with 1.8 million views, 57,800 likes, 2,223 comments, and 1,090 shares claimed Rodrigo Duterte is returning to the Philippines on April 1, 2026. Its caption stated that according to Vice President Sara Duterte, her family is preparing necessary documents for the former president's return, and that Duterte is aware and happy after a year away.
However, no reports from the vice president's office or credible news outlets support this claim. On February 25, Sara Duterte said in an interview in Iligan City, as reported by The Philippine Star, that the family no longer expects her father to return since he remains detained in The Hague, Netherlands, awaiting ICC proceedings. "We are no longer looking at the chances of [the former president] coming home. We’re no longer talking about that," she said.
She referenced her father's ICC statement acknowledging he might die in detention. Rodrigo Duterte remains at the ICC facility in The Hague, with no published decision allowing his release or return to the Philippines, per the ICC's official website.
The claim emerged after the four-day confirmation of charges hearing in Duterte's crimes against humanity case, held from February 23 to 27 at the ICC headquarters. Judges have begun deliberations, expected to issue a decision within 60 days under Regulation 53. They may confirm charges for trial or halt proceedings if evidence is insufficient, though the Office of the Prosecutor could request a new hearing with additional evidence.
The video's image is AI-generated, with 98% probability via Sight Engine, 99.4% via Hive Moderation, and 99.93% via AI Image Detector. The claim relies solely on this fake graphic, providing no supporting evidence.
