Pulong to admin: 'Quit playing with the rule of law'
“It is legal when you do it, but when it’s someone else that does it, it becomes an automatic violation?”
Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte challenged the recent statement of Malacañang concerning the pending arrest of Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, arguing that the government could not “legally” arrest him due to the absence of a “valid warrant of arrest.”
Pulong said that the current administration was repeating what it did to his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, who was taken to the Hague, Netherlands by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
“Show the public the document, the legal basis, and the process. Don’t repeatedly conduct a press briefing acting like the microphone and podium is the warrant,” the younger Duterte said in a social media post.
“Where is the arrest warrant of Rody Duterte? Was that not kidnapping?” he added.
The lawmaker said that the government was manipulating the law to make it seem that what it was doing was legal, shifting it in a way that fit its intended narratives.
Pulong emphasized that the government could not pick and choose how it applied the regulations if it truly respected and followed the rule of law.
“The current administration can not only follow the law that favors it, but you manipulate it when the Dutertes are involved,” he said.
Amid his concerns, Pulong stressed to authorities that the absence of a “legal” warrant rendered the arrest of Dela Rosa illegal, reiterating his stance that it was tantamount to kidnapping.
He further stated that the only reason that a case for kidnapping has yet to be filed was because of the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
“So think carefully if you would allow yourselves to be used for the kidnapping of Bato. Think about the Constitution you swore to defend and the Filipinos you swore to protect,” Pulong stressed.
The comments of the lawmaker came as a direct response to Palace Press Officer, Presidential Communications Office undersecretary Claire Castro who urged authorities to enforce Dela Rosa’s warrant despite his previous ties to the Philippine National Police.
Contrary to Pulong, Castro maintained that there was a valid arrest warrant and that government agencies had no other option than to implement it.
“There is a valid warrant of arrest, so, you cannot decide whether you will arrest Senator Bato Dela Rosa or not just because he was previously your chief,” she said in a press briefing on Tuesday.
Castro also underscored that it was the role of the police officers to enforce the law and to follow orders that were directed to them in accordance with the Constitution.
Dela Rosa has a pending warrant of arrest from the ICC for being an alleged co-perpetrator in the crimes against humanity case against the former president over the latter’s infamous “war on drugs.”
The fugitive senator has not been publicly seen since 14 May after a brief appearance at the Senate.
Authorities have since ramped up efforts to secure his arrest including the imposition of P50 million reward for any person that had information on his whereabouts.