DOJ orders NBI, PNP to arrest Dela Rosa

MANILA, Philippines —  Law enforcers particularly from the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) are under orders to “effect the arrest” of Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida said yesterday.

“I would like to confirm… the Philippine law enforcement agencies, which would include the PNP, the National Bureau of Investigation, are now tasked to effect the arrest of Sen. Bato de la Rosa,” Vida said, referring to Dela Rosa by his nickname.

“Senator Bato is a fugitive from justice and he should be brought to the ICC to face the charges before him,” Vida said at a press conference at the Department of Justice, referring to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Vida’s announcement came a day after the Supreme Court rejected Dela Rosa’s petition for a temporary restraining order against his arrest.

Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said he has ordered the 230,000-strong PNP to launch a manhunt for Dela Rosa.

“We will follow the lead of the DOJ,” Remulla said in a message on Viber.

PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. has also ordered the Maritime Group and Aviation Security Group to beef up their security to thwart any attempt of Dela Rosa to leave the country.

While there is no record from the Bureau of Immigration that Dela Rosa has left the country, Nartatez said police units have intensified intelligence monitoring on all exit points, including the so-called southern backdoor or Mindanao.

“The PNP shall perform its mandate in accordance with existing laws, due process, and established operational procedures,” Nartatez said.

He assured Dela Rosa’s supporters that police officers will respect the senator’s constitutional rights.

Dela Rosa was named as one of the co-perpetrators of detained former president Rodrigo Duterte in his case of crimes against humanity before the ICC.

Enforceable warrant

Vida declared there was enough basis to arrest Dela Rosa since his warrant is “valid” and “enforceable,” and he is “not in the Senate premises.”

Dela Rosa stayed at the Senate under “protective custody” from May 11 to 14. He slipped out before dawn on May 14 hours after a shooting incident that turned out to have been instigated by Senate sergeant-at-arms Mao Aplasca supposedly to stop armed men from barging into the Senate premises.

When asked if the Philippine government would “surrender” Dela Rosa to the ICC should he be arrested, Vida said, “These are operational matters I cannot discuss so that we don’t defeat the purpose of this arrest, which is the ultimate objective is to bring him to the ICC.”

Warning out vs aiding and abetting Bato

He also warned those “who might be aiding or abetting or helping Sen. Bato evade the law, that there are consequences.”

Vida’s spokesman Polo Martinez said it took time for authorities to implement the ICC warrant in deference to the Senate which placed the senator under its “protective custody” as well as to the Supreme Court.

“Now the factual circumstances have changed. First of all, he’s no longer under protective custody of the Senate because he’s not in the Senate. Second, the application for TRO has been denied outright by the Supreme Court. So iba na ngayon. That’s why this directive is being done now,” Martinez added.

Minority senators, meanwhile, said there is no more stopping the enforcement of the ICC arrest warrant.

“The rule of law should always prevail,” Sen. Risa Hontiveros said. Hontiveros urged Dela Rosa to surrender to authorities so as not to drag other institutions in his attempt to hide from the law.

“I pray for the peaceful and lawful resolution of this situation which has already affected multiple institutions, and the entire country itself,” she added.

In a phone interview, Sen. Erwin Tulfo said he finds it telling that the Supreme Court has refused to immediately issue a TRO while it weighs the merits of Dela Rosa’s bid to block the warrant.

In a chance interview after the session on Wednesday, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said there is basis already for authorities to arrest Dela Rosa in the absence of a TRO.

Bato allies stand ground

Dela Rosa’s allies in the Senate from the majority rallied behind the senator now considered a fugitive.

Sen. Robin Padilla expressed sadness but denied committing any crime when he accompanied Dela Rosa in leaving the Senate premises at 2:30 a.m. on May 14.

Speaking to ANC yesterday, Sen. Imee Marcos maintained that the ICC warrant is not a valid warrant without a local court order.

The President’s sister also denied Dela Rosa “escaped” when he left the Senate premises, saying he “just walked out together with Senator Robin.”

Meanwhile, a professor from the University of the Philippines College of Law said the 9-5-1 ruling of the Supreme Court was “unusual,” coming as it is from a court many members of which were appointees of former president Rodrigo Duterte.

“Honestly, I was surprised by the number (9-5-1 ruling). We don’t expect our magistrates, our courts to be biased because they were appointed by the former president (Rodrigo Duterte), but looking at the decisions that have come out in the past, the court has a little skepticism about the ICC process, usually it has concerns about allegedly due process against allies of former president Duterte, so somehow, 9-5-1 is surprising, it is surprising in the sense that it came out so quickly. The turnaround was pretty quick, on Saturday the SolGen filed their comment. On Tuesday Sen. Bato filed a reply. On Wednesday, there was a resolution,” said UP College of Law Associate Dean and assistant professor Paolo Emmanuel Tamase.

“There are two important caveats or warnings. First, the SC resolution has not yet been released. All we saw yesterday was a press release. But what is unusual about the press release is that they actually gave a date for the resolution to be released. It is not common for the SC to do that,” Tamase said.

“So, we expect that on Monday, when that resolution is released on May 25, we need to understand the language of the court whether they are just blanket denying the TRO or they also have warnings that the executive department should take action or take precautions. So that is what we are interested in first,” Tamase said. - Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Bella Cariaso