Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa on Friday, August 16 said he is hoping that the Senate, under the leadership of Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero, will remain its independent stance should “worse comes to worst” and Malacañang allows the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) investigators to come to the Philippines and grants the issuance of an arrest warrant against him and other suspects in the drug war.

For one, Dela Rosa said he can vouch that Escudero is a “very brilliant lawyer and a good leader” who can maintain the Senate's independence, especially regarding the ICC's probe into the war on drugs. 

“I’m just hoping na pagdating, kung just in case, lalabas ng warrant of arrest ang ICC, ipakita rin niya yung kanyang true leadership sa Senado (I’m just hoping that inevitably, just in case, the ICC releases a warrant of arrest, he should be able to show true leadership in the Senate),” Dela Rosa said in an online interview. 

“Not really to defend me as a member or as his subordinate, but to stand up for what is right, to stand up for the institutioin that he is leading,” he said.

“Yun lang yung ine-expect ko sa kanya, depensahan niya yung institution, yung Senado (That’s all I am expecting from him, that he is able to defend the institution, the Senate),” he stressed. 

At the same time, Dela Rosa said he hopes that the Senate would adopt a stand that would “reflect the true identity of the Senate” as the last bastion of democracy in the country. 

“If Malacañang ultimately decides otherwise from what we are expecting, I hope that the Senate will not bow down its head to the Executive branch of government. The Senate should have a separate stand on this particular issue,” he pointed out.

Dela Rosa, who was the Philippine National Police (PNP) chief and implementer of the Duterte adminstration’s “war on drugs,” is currently among those subject of a complaint of crimes against humanity before the ICC, aside from former president Rodrigo Duterte. 

Earlier, talks of Duterte and Dela Rosa being arrested surfaced after retired Supreme Court Chief Justice Antonio Carpio hinted that the ICC prosecutor’s investigation on the Duterte administration’s brutal anti-narcotics campaign has “reached a pivotal point” and arrest warrants would be released “sometime in September.”

While he is anticipating the possibility of being arrested by the ICC, the senator said he hopes that the Senate would be firm in its decision “whatever it is, whatever decision the Senate will collectively adopt.”

“The Senate should stand as a separate and independent entity. The Senate should maintain its role of being a co-equal branch of government,” he said.

Dela Rosa also reiterated that he is holding on to President Marcos’s promise not to recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC in the Philippines. 

“Why do I have to listen to his underlings who are trying to subvert his policy when the President himself has it made clear?” he pointed out.