Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa on Thursday, January 4 expressed confidence that President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will follow through with his promise that no International Criminal Court (ICC) investigator will enter the Philippines.
Dela Rosa pointed this out amid claims that ICC probers have already entered the country to start its investigation into the so-called war on drugs of the former Duterte administration.
The senator said he will verify such claims and get confirmation from the Department of Justice (DOJ).
According to the former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief, the President himself made the assurance during a dinner the latter hosted for senators in Malacañang last Nov. 28, 2023.
aDela Rosa has been tagged as among the accused in the ICC’s investigation into the brutal war on drugs of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Naniniwala ako sa Pangulo. Buo ang tiwala ko sa kanya sa sinabi niya sa akin about the ICC until now. Buong buo pa rin ang aking paniniwala sa kanya na hindi niya papapasukin ang ICC (I believe in the President. I have full trust in him when he said he will not allow the ICC to to enter. Until now, I still believe his promise he will not allow the ICC to enter the Philippines),” Dela Rosa said in an online interview.
But if there is truth to the reports and if found that their supposed entry is unauthorized by the Marcos administration, Dela Rosa said he will ask the DOJ to do the right thing and have them deported immediately.
“I will ask the DOJ you do the right thing. That’s sobrang encroachment ‘yan sa ating (That’s too much encroachment on our) sovereignty,” Dela Rosa said.
“They should be declared as undesirable aliens by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) at once. Right away, i-declare sila (they should be declared as one),” he said.
In February last year, Marcos said the Philippines will not cooperate with the ICC’s investigation into the alleged abuses committed by the previous administration during the drug war.
But in November 2023, the President suddenly floated the idea of the Philippines returning to the ICC , saying it is “under study.” He, however, maintained there are still questions over “jurisdiction.”