ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Palace to Dela Rosa: If you're innocent, come out

Palace to Dela Rosa: If you're innocent, come out

Published May 18, 2026 02:24 pm

At A Glance

  • Malacañang said that Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa, who used to be a chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), should know that there is a "valid warrant of arrest" issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Thus, he must come out and face it.
  • While the government is awaiting the decision of the Supreme Court on Dela Rosa's plea over the ICC arrest warrant, a Palace official said Dela Rosa should not attempt to flee the country.
Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa answers questions from the media outside his office at the Senate of the Philippines in Pasay City on Tuesday, May 12. (Photos by Mark Balmores/MB)
Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa answers questions from the media outside his office at the Senate of the Philippines in Pasay City on Tuesday, May 12. (Photos by Mark Balmores/MB)
Echoing a previous statement from Senator Robin Padilla, Malacañang urged Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa to come out and face the charges against him.
Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said Dela Rosa, who used to be the chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), should know that there is a "valid warrant of arrest" issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
"Mas maganda po na bilang dating PNP Chief at alam naman po niya na may valid warrant of arrest na inisyu ang ICC at katulad nung sinasabi dati ni Senator Robin Padilla kung walang kasalanan, lumabas (It would be better, especially since he is a former PNP Chief and he knows that the ICC had issued a valid warrant of arrest. Just like what Senator Robin Padilla used to say: if you are innocent, come out)," Castro said in a Palace briefing on Monday, May 18.
Castro made the statement when asked if Malacañang would call on Dela Rosa to surrender.

'If he attempts to flee the country, he will be arrested'

The Palace official also warned Dela Rosa that if he attempts to flee the country, he will be arrested.
At present, the government is awaiting the Supreme Court's decision on the senator's ICC arrest warrant. But if he flies out of the country to evade arrest, the government will go after him, according to Castro.
"Kung ano po ang dapat na gawin – nagsalita na po ang DOJ na sa ngayon dahil mayroon po tayong hinihintay na desisyon mula sa Supreme Court at iginagalang po ng Pangulo at ang administrasyon ang nakabinbing kaso sa Supreme Court ngunit hindi kailangang tumakas palabas ng bansa si Senator Bato dela Rosa (As for what should be done, the DOJ has already stated that for now, we are awaiting a decision from the Supreme Court, and the President and the administration respect the pending case before the Supreme Court. However, Senator Bato dela Rosa does not need to flee the country)," Castro said.
"Kapag siya ay nagtangka, ayon na rin sa DOJ, siya ay huhulihin (If he attempts to do so, the DOJ has also said that he will be arrested)," Castro added.
Dela Rosa is now listed under the ICC's wanted persons over crimes against humanity in connection to the alleged crimes committed during the Duterte administration's war on drugs.
Last week, he briefly resurfaced in the Senate during the change of leadership. He stayed in the Senate from May 11 until May 13.
Dela Rosa left the Senate premises hours after the incident, where multiple gunshots were fired within the building in an attempt to "arrest somebody."
The arrest warrant from the ICC was never served to Dela Rosa during his brief stay in the Senate.
On May 11, when he was allegedly chased by NBI agents upon his arrival at the Senate, he was given a protective custody by the Senate.
On May 13, the Supreme Court (SC) decided not to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the implementation of the ICC arrest warrant against Dela Rosa.

Related Tags

Malacañang Bato Dela Rosa ICC arrest warrant drug war senate Claire Castro
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.