DILG's Remulla: Still no confirmation of alleged ICC warrant vs Bato

Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Tuesday said there's still no confirmation of the supposed International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.

“Alleged pa rin siya hanggang ngayon. Pero as far as I'm concerned, wala pa ako nakikitang formal copy of a warrant of arrest or request for an arrest from the ICC,” Remulla said at a Palace briefing. 

(It remains to be analleged warrant until now.)

“So just to make it clear, neither the DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs) nor the DILG, PNP (Philippine National Police), or the Center for Transnational Crimes have received a formal copy of the warrant of arrest,” he added.

While there were several people claiming to have seen the ICC warrant against the senator, Remulla said there is no formal copy yet shown to his agency.

“There are several people who claimed to have seen a copy but the formal copy has not been yet shown to us,” he said.

Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV previously noted that Dela Rosa and four other high-ranking ex-police officials have been tagged as suspects amid the ICC probe into former President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs for a crimes against humanity case. 

Trillanes is one of the personalities who filed a case against Duterte before the ICC.

Dela Rosa served as the chief of the Philippine National Police during the implementation of the drug war under the Duterte administration.

It was Remulla's brother, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla, who was then Justice secretary who said that the ICC has reportedly issued a warrant against Dela Rosa.

According to him, he has an unofficial copy of the warrant.

Dela Rosa’s counsel, Atty. Israelito Torreon, previously said that the government has no legal basis to surrender any of its citizens to an international tribunal due to the absence of rules governing the process.

Dela Rosa has not been seen in the Senate for nearly two months now after reports of the supposed ICC arrest warrant against him. —VAL, GMA Integrated News