(2nd UPDATE) Senator Bato dela Rosa, considered as the drug war ‘architect,’ was Rodrigo Duterte’s first Philippine National Police chief who first implemented the bloody war on drugs
It’s just been months since the arrest of former president Rodrigo Duterte by the International Criminal Court in March. Is someone else on the brink of IC detention too?
There is, at least according to Ombudsman Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla.
Remulla said the ICC has already issued a warrant of arrest against Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, former national police chief of the Duterte administration, over his involvement in the war on drugs.
The Ombudsman, who previously served as Department of Justice (DOJ) chief, confirmed to Rappler on Saturday, November 8, that another official has relayed him the information regarding the warrant.
On the part of Remulla’s former agency, the DOJ, now headed by acting chief Fredderick Vida, the agency is still verifying the information.
“As of this hour, we are currently working to verify this information. We have also not yet seen or received a copy of said arrest warrant. We shall provide further details as soon as it becomes available,” DOJ spokesperson Prosecutor Rafael Martinez told reporters.
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) chief Juanito Victor “Jonvic” Remulla said he has not been informed about the reported development.
“As per the center for transnational crimes, there has been no red notice issued by the Interpol as of 10 minutes ago,” the DILG chief told Rappler.
The ICC had coursed Duterte’s arrest in March through the Interpol. Philippine authorities then led by the Remullas implemented the ICC warrant on the principle of cooperating with the international police organization.
ICC warrants are usually kept under the wraps. During Duterte’s arrest, the warrant was made public only after the former president had been placed under the authorities’ custody.
“As before, we cannot confirm something that the Court has not publicly shared. The warrant of arrest against Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa, in case it has been issued, has not yet been publicly shared and posted,” said ICC assistant counsel for the victims Kristina Conti.
“But we maintain that a warrant against Bato dela Rosa as Duterte’s co-perpetrator of crimes against humanity is certain from what victims know and what the prosecution has presented. The Marcos administration has to enforce his arrest and surrender to the ICC as part of our continuing obligations to the court, also following the recent decision on the jurisidiction challenge of Rodrigo Duterte in his case,” she added.
Dela Rosa’s counsel, Israelito Torreon, said they are aware of the reports about the supposed warrant, adding that they will wait official confirmation before making any further statement.
“At this point, we do not have independent confirmation as to whether or not this information is accurate. We therefore urge the public and the media to exercise caution and restraint in sharing or interpreting such reports until verified information is officially released by competent authorities or by the ICC itself,” Torreon said.
Senate President Tito Sotto said they won’t allow arrests be made within the Senate premises, but it’s a different conversation if done outside of the Senate halls.
“But as I have said in the past and in consultation with some members of the Senate, to preserve the dignity of the Senate, and as a matter of institutional courtesy, we cannot allow any senator to be arrested in the Senate premises. Outside the Senate premises, that’s no longer our concern,” the senator said.
Dela Rosa’s former principal, Duterte, has been at the ICC’s detention center in The Hague, the Netherlands, following his arrest in Manila last March. He is facing crimes against humanity cases over the drug war that killed nearly 30,000 people, based on human rights groups tallies.
On separate occasions, Dela Rosa expressed readiness to face the ICC “any time,” saying that he has “no more fears” in dealing with the court probing the drug war killings.
Dela Rosa was among the Philippine officials whom the ICC prosecutor had requested an interview with in 2024. These officials are said to be “under suspicion” by the court. (READ: ICC prosecutor requests to talk with Philippine officials ‘under suspicion’)
The police-turned-lawmaker played a vital role in the drug war as he is considered its “architect.” He was Duterte’s first Philippine National Police (PNP) chief who first implemented the bloody drug war.
Between July 2016 to October 2018, covering most of Dela Rosa’s time as PNP chief, at least 4,999 had died, according to Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency’s data.
Prior to his appointment as PNP chief, Dela Rosa served as Davao City police chief when Duterte was mayor.
In his affidavit submitted to the ICC, former cop and Davao Death Squad (DDS) member and whistleblower Arturo Lascañas tagged Dela Rosa as among public officials who were “enablers” of Duterte. The DDS is said to be Duterte’s own team of alleged killers.
Edgar Matobato, a former DDS member, also implicated Dela Rosa and said that the former Davao City police chief was aware of the DDS’ activities. In 2021, former ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda named Dela Rosa as being part of an “apparent” policy to perpetrate extrajudicial killings. – With reports from Tatiana Maligro/Rappler.com