‘Sing nat’l anthem 1,000 times’: Dela Rosa says pro-ICC Filipinos don’t love PH

MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos who favor the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) probe should be made to sing the Philippine national anthem 1,000 times to rekindle their love for the country, said Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.

Dela Rosa, who was among those mentioned in the crimes against humanity complaint before the ICC, said Filipinos siding with the international court do not love the Philippines.

READ: War on drugs: The violence, scars, doubts and families it left behind

“Ewan ko bakit itong mga bleeding hearts na gustong gustong i-surrender ang ating sovereignty doon sa foreign bodies. Hindi sila nagmamahal sa ating bansa — they do not love this country. Gustong gusto nilang i-surrender at gustong gusto nilang babastusin ang ating mga korte,” said dela Rosa over ANC’s Headstart on Wednesday.

(I don’t know why these bleeding hearts want to surrender our sovereignty to foreign bodies. They do not love our country — they do not love this country. They want to surrender, and they want to insult our courts.)

“Bakit naman ganun ang pag-iisip natin? I don’t know [about] this kind of Filipinos. Siguro dapat ang mga Pilipino na ito dapat ay pakantahin natin ng 1,000 times ng bayang magiliw (Lupang Hinirang) para matuto silang magmahal ng bansa,” he suggested.

(Why do we think like that? I don’t know about this kind of Filipinos. Maybe these Filipinos should be made to sing the national anthem 1,000 times so that they learn to love the country.)

READ: Bato dela Rosa salutes Marcos: ‘You are a man who keeps his word’ 

Dela Rosa, in the same interview, maintained that there was “no crime against humanity” committed in former President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody drug war.

However, thousands have reportedly been killed under the brutal anti-drug campaign.

In February 2022 alone, data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency showed that the number of drug suspects killed in the previous administration’s bloody war on drugs climbed to 6,235.

“Lahat [ay may] record. May record ang Philippine National Police, Department of Justice, may record ang ating mga korte as far as cases filed. Nandyan naman ‘yan lahat — isa-isahin natin. Huwag nating i-lump sum,” dela Rosa said.

(Every agency kept a record. The PNP, DOJ, and our courts have records regarding cases filed. That’s right there — let’s break it down.)

“Ilan ang pulis na namatay? Crime against humanity ba ‘yan? Hindi ah. Ilan dyan ang mga pinatay na drug lord? Crime against humanity ba ‘yan? Hindi,” he added.

(How many policemen died? Is that a crime against humanity? Nope. How many drug lords were killed? Is that a crime against humanity? No.)