Malacañang Palace on Monday maintained that it will cooperate with the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) if the arrest warrant against Senators Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa and Christopher Lawrence ‘Bong’ Go has been released and served.
On Valentine’s Day, the International Criminal Court (ICC) Office of the Prosecutor named incumbent lawmakers Dela Rosa and Go, and former Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguire II, as alleged co-perpetrators in the bloody drug war campaign against illegal drugs during the term of former-President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
“Iyon po ang nangyari before, at iyan din po ang mangyayari ngayon,” said Palace press officer, Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro, when asked if it will cooperate if Interpol operatives arrest Senators Dela Rosa and Go anytime soon.
She stressed that the alleged crimes committed happened in 2017, and the Palace is distancing itself, even if the ICC has initiated a legal process.
“Kung ito naman ay legal process na nanggagaling po sa ICC, hindi naman po natin ito maaaring pakialaman dahil ang kasong iyan ay naisampa noon pa, 2017, at hindi pa po pangulo si Pangulong Marcos Jr. So, kung dadaan sa proseso, iyon naman po ang nais ng pamahalaang ito. Ang ginagawa ng pamahalaang ito ay dumadaan lahat sa proseso,” she said.
Asked if the Palace would still facilitate the arrest even if it did not undergo the country’s local court, Castro said it was done before during the arrest of ex-President Duterte.
“Nagawa na po before at ang sinunod po ay ang batas na umiiral sa ating bansa at nakipag-coordinate po ang ating pamahalaan sa Interpol kaya po naipadala ang dating Pangulong Duterte sa The Hague,” she said.
Castro stressed that the trial of the case is more likely to be unbiased if it is heard under the jurisdiction of the ICC, a foreign organization of which the Philippines is not a member, after ex-President Duterte ordered the country’s renunciation.
“We can say that the cases are held and can be heard before the courts here in the Philippines, but we also have a rule, we also have a law that allows the government to surrender the alleged defendants to the ICC. So, it’s a choice, para mas hindi mapulitika. Hindi ba mas maganda kung korte na hindi naiimpluwensiyahan at hindi masasabing namumulitika ang siyang didinig para walang masabi, manalo man ang dating Pangulong Duterte, matalo man ang dating Pangulong Duterte at kaniyang mga co-perpetrators, walang masasabi ang Pilipino dahil neutral iyon, hindi po maaaring impluwensiyahan,” she expressed.
The Philippines became a member of the Rome Statute from 1 November 2011 to 16 March 2019, and withdrew on 17 March 2019, a year after the country notified its withdrawal.
Davao City Representative Paolo ‘Pulong’ Duterte, along with his two siblings, Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte and Veronica ‘Kitty’ Duterte, filed a Petition for Habeas Corpus for their father last year, maintaining that his arrest violated the Philippine Constitution.
“Any act in enforcing the warrant of arrest after the withdrawal of the Philippines from the Rome Statute is unconstitutional,” Rep. Duterte said in its memorandum to the Supreme Court sent on 5 January 2026.
The high court then ordered the three Duterte siblings to file memoranda to address whether or not the case became moot following Duterte’s transfer to the ICC.
Looming chaos
And as the arrest of Senators Dela Rosa and Go looms, which is expected to be chaotic just like what happened during the arrest of then-President Duterte, the Palace press officer said Filipinos should not take sides, especially if the serving of the arrest warrant is meant to serve justice for those who were killed during the bloody drug war.
“Hindi po dapat i-encourage ninuman na magkagulo kung nagsisilbi lamang po ng valid warrant of arrest. Muli, ang kaso na isinampa, kung mayroon naman pong batayan ay dapat lamang pong madinggin para malaman natin, pareho naman po itong magiging hustisya sa dalawang panig – hustisya sa mga diumanong naging biktima ng EJK, ng extrajudicial killings at ito ay magsisilbi ring hustisya para doon sa naaakusahan kung mapapakita niyang wala naman siyang kinalaman at wala siyang kasalanan, maaaring magkaroon ng acquittal sa nasabing kaso,” she said.
Why hide?
Castro also wondered why some personalities have already gone into hiding, particularly Senator Dela Rosa, who has been absent from the Senate for six months.
“Unang-una, kung kayo ay nagtatago, ano ba ang ibig sabihin niyan? Kayo ba ay may kasalanan, tinatago ninyo para hindi po kayo madinig at ma-escape kayo or ma-evade the liability of what you have done? So, hindi po kinakailangang magtago kung alam po nila na sila ay walang kasalanan, humarap sila at maging matapang sa maaaring proseso,” she said.
Castro, however, said the government will not be on the lookout for those named by the ICC as co-perpetrators, so long as there is no warrant of arrest released yet.
“Kapag may warrant of arrest na naisyu na po, kailangang i-implement. So, kung babantayan sila, sa ngayon ay wala pa pong dahilan para sila ay bantayan dahil wala pa pong na-receive ng gobyerno ng warrants of arrest,” she said.
