Palace to Dela Rosa: Face ICC arrest warrant

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang has called on Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who has again disappeared from public view to present himself and face the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The ICC has issued a warrant of arrest against dela Rosa for allegedly being a co-conspirator in former President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs.

READ: SolGen counters Dela Rosa’s SC petition vs ICC arrest

“Mas maganda po na bilang dating PNP [Philippine National Chief] chief at alam naman po niya na may valid warrant of arrest na inisyu ang ICC at katulad noong sinasabi dati ni Senator Robin Padilla kung walang kasalanan, lumabas,” said Palace Press Officer Claire Castro.

(It would be better, as a former Philippine National Police chief, and since he knows there is a valid warrant of arrest issued by the International Criminal Court, for him to face it — just like what Robin Padilla used to say: if you have done nothing wrong, then show up.)

Dela Rosa was the principal architect of the Duterte administration’s war on drugs during his tenure as PNP chief from July 2016 to April 2018.

READ: Palace hits Padilla over alleged aid in dela Rosa Senate ‘escape’

The Office of the Solicitor General on Sunday urged the Supreme Court to deny the senator’s plea to block the implementation of the ICC warrant that would send him to The Hague, Netherlands, where Duterte is already detained.

The SC has yet to issue a final decision on the senator’s petition as of posting time.

Additionally, Castro said President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. showed a “disappointed” expression when he was asking his Cabinet members about recent developments in the Senate.

“Noong nagkaroon po ng meeting inalam niya kung anong pangyayari at makikita mo sa hitsura ng Pangulo at kung papaano siya magtanong sa mga Cabinet secretaries, nandoon po iyong disappointment. Hindi sa Cabinet secretaries kung hindi sa pangyayari sa Senado,” she said.

(When there was a meeting, he tried to understand what happened. And you can see it in the President’s face and how he was asking the Cabinet secretaries—there was disappointment. Not in the Cabinet secretaries, but in what happened at the Senate.)

On Wednesday last week, gunshots rang out at the Senate building amid the supposed plan to arrest dela Rosa.

A few hours later, Marcos issued a video statement saying there was no order for the senator’s arrest during that time. He also insisted it was not the government that was behind the chaos. /gsg