Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who has not appeared at the Senate since learning of an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against him, may yet escape sanctions from his peers.

An ethics complaint seeking a “no work, no pay” sanction against Dela Rosa, arising from his prolonged absence, is poised to be dismissed outright because Senate rules do not cover such sanctions.

This unless the chamber amends the rules before hearing the case, Senator JV Ejercito said Wednesday.

“If we proceed with this, the case will be dismissed outright because it is not in our rules. We cannot find it anywhere in our rules, [whether in the] ethics or in the Senate rules,” said Ejercito, chair of the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges, in a briefing shortly after the panel’s second closed-door meeting.

“If they want it to prosper, we need to amend the rules to include the no work, no pay,” he added.

Dela Rosa has been absent from the Senate since November last year, shortly after Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla revealed that an ICC warrant was already out for him for his role as police chief in the deadly drug war of former President Rodrigo Duterte.

Incommunicado

Senate President Tito Sotto and Dela Rosa’s allies in the minority bloc said they had received no communication from him. They said, however, that his office continues to function without him.

According to Ejercito, Dela Rosa’s ethics case does not require immediate attention by the committee because they have a “first-in, first-out” rule.

Since Dela Rosa’s case is either fifth or sixth in line, it’s not considered a priority. Ejercito was quick to dismiss allegations the committee was dragging its feet in the case, asserting that the panel strictly abides by the rules and cannot act on external pressures just because Dela Rosa’s case is politically urgent.

In February, ICC prosecutors named Dela Rosa and Senator Christopher “Bong” Go among Duterte’s “co-perpetrators” in the crimes against humanity in connection with his bloody drug war.

According to the ICC, Duterte and his co-perpetrators, including other members of law enforcement agencies, carried out a “common plan” to curb illegal drugs and crimes, which allegedly involved systematic killings, torture, and other crimes.

Dela Rosa was also the signatory to Command Memorandum Circular 16-2016 issued on Duterte’s first day in office as president. The memorandum outlined general guidelines and tasks of police offices, units, and stations in the nationwide conduct of the brutal anti-drug campaign dubbed “Project Double Barrel,” more commonly known as “Oplan Tokhang.”

Civil society group Wag Kang KuCorrupt, headed by former finance undersecretary Cielo Magno, filed an ethics case against Dela Rosa in February, citing his prolonged and unexplained absence from the Senate.

They accused the opposition senator not only of a “dereliction” of his official duty, but also of “gravely abusing” the privilege entrusted to him by the public as an elected official.

The complainants hoped the committee would withhold Dela Rosa’s salary until he reported to work.

Dela Rosa’s continued absence has cost him nearly all of his committee memberships.

At present, six ethics complaints are pending before the committee, including one filed against the chairperson himself, over accusations of “grossly neglecting” a similar complaint filed against Senator Chiz Escudero involving a P35-million campaign donation from one of the top government contractors for flood control projects.

Aside from them, Senator Risa Hontiveros is also facing a similar complaint filed by pro-Duterte lawyers in late October, accusing her of “witness tampering” involving a Senate witness, Michael Maurillo, who recanted his statements against the alleged “abuses” in the compound of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, founded by televangelist Apollo Quiboloy.

Ejercito said the ethics committee intends to hold hearings to deliberate on the cases during the congressional break.