Bato can’t hide forever

Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa built his brand on fearlessness. He once dared Antonio Trillanes to slap the handcuffs on him if the ICC issued a warrant for his arrest over the Duterte drug war.

But this week, the swagger vanished.

Dela Rosa has been absent from the Senate for three straight days after Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla claimed he had a copy of an ICC arrest warrant — one that, according to Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, came from a mysterious “third source” and not through official channels.

No one in government has actually seen the original document. Even so, the timing is striking and the senator’s silence is louder than any denial.

Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson was blunt: the Senate cannot shelter Dela Rosa indefinitely. Any courtesy granted to a colleague is still just courtesy.

“He can’t stay in the Senate premises forever… the Constitution will prevail,” Lacson said.

Meanwhile, the ICC has begun keeping warrant applications secret by default, meaning a warrant could exist without being disclosed publicly.

For a man who once mocked the idea of being arrested, Dela Rosa’s sudden disappearance raises the question he’s trying hard not to answer:

Was all that tough talk just talk?    --- Jason Mago

Pretty privilege

When a powerful man wants to leave the country, the system clears the runway. When an ordinary man wants to leave, the system clears its throat.

Former DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan — the man seated at the center of the flood control scandal — is now comfortably in the United States, “attending to his wife’s medical needs.” The man tagged in multibillion-peso anomalies. The man Congress and the Ombudsman were preparing to investigate. He was out of the country before anyone could even say “wait a minute.”

Why? Because the DoJ and BI say he only has an ILBO — that fancy acronym for “I’ll Look. Bust Out.” No Hold Departure Order. No barrier. No urgency. Just monitored freedom.

This is the privilege of someone with power and connections — someone whose former boss now happens to operate the NAIA.

Meanwhile, ordinary citizens are grilled at immigration counters for looking “suspicious.” Many get denied visas. Some can’t even afford to apply. Those with a criminal record? Forget redemption — you’re marked for life.

And while Bonoan can fly abroad for medical care, countless Filipinos can’t even step into a hospital without a down payment or a PhilHealth miracle.                  --- Carl Magadia

Merry Christmas, ya filthy animal

While people count down to Christmas, others are counting the days since the SoNA — when a noble man said, “mahiya naman kayo.”

“Sa mga susunod na buwan, makakasuhan ang lahat ng mga lalabas na may sala, pati na ang mga kasabwat na kontratista,” President Marcos Jr. declared in July.

It’s November. Even Juan Ponce Enrile has died waiting — and not a single big name has touched the bars.

Yes, some contractors and DPWH officials are being prosecuted in Senate hearings and closed-door meetings. But the big fish remain free and swimming.

People are tired of the same names — the Discaya couple, Brice Hernandez, Henry Alcantara — while the real masterminds remain untouched. Some even attend budget hearings and ICI meetings like nothing happened.

Take Zaldy Co — whose whereabouts only God seems to know. Rumor says he’s in the US, or maybe Spain. Wherever he is, he’s surely lounging comfortably while Filipinos wade through floods back home. Despite being repeatedly implicated — along with Martin Romualdez — Co hasn’t received the scrutiny others have.

His passport remains intact. He hasn’t been compelled to return and face the public.

If I were Zaldy — and I knew someone bigger and more powerful was also involved — I, too, would stay hidden.

In his latest Palace appearance, the President said Co’s passport cannot be canceled because no charges have been filed. But in a government full of brilliant legal minds, is it really that hard to file a case? Or are they protecting someone higher?

Asked if he thinks Zaldy is the most guilty, the President refused to answer, saying he didn’t want to prejudge.

Maybe the most guilty aren’t the ones we see. They’re the ones we can’t — shielded by power.

It’s 41 days to Christmas and 109 days since the SoNA.

Time to wrap the gifts — and the guilty.                --- Vivienne Angeles