Bato forgoing salary may be a basis to junk ethics complaint —JV Ejercito

Should he heed the call, Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa voluntarily refraining from receiving his salary and allowances amid his prolonged absence in the Senate may be a ground for dismissing the ethics complaint filed against him, committee chairman Senator JV Ejercito said Wednesday. 

Ejercito, however, emphasized that the decision is still up to the committee members and he will only act as "facilitator" as committee chairman.

“Dahil ‘yun ang basis ng complaint, it might be basis for the dismissal kasi nga kung talagang hindi na niya tatanggapin ang sweldo niya, sahod niya, allowances, so wala nang basehan ang complaint. Pero pag-uusapan pa ng committee members ‘yan,” he said in an ambush interview. 

(Because that is the basis of the complaint, forgoing his salary and allowances might be a basis for the dismissal because the complaint will no longer have a basis. But the committee members will still have to discuss that.) 

Dela Rosa has not made any public appearance and has not attended any session at the Senate since November 2025, amid claims that the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant of arrest against him over his links to the controversial war on drugs. 

Civil society group “Wag Kang KuCorrupt” filed the ethics complaint against the absentee senator in February 2026, urging the Senate committee to conduct a formal inquiry into the matter, determine whether there has been a violation of Senate rules and ethical standards, and impose appropriate sanctions if warranted. 

On Tuesday, Ejercito made an appeal to Dela Rosa to voluntarily forgo his Senate salary and allowances for the time being while he remains absent.

He also reiterated that the Senate has no existing “no work, no pay” policy, therefore the rules have to be amended first to deal with senators’ absences. 

Ejercito said that Dela Rosa waiving his salary would give “peace of mind” to his camp and everyone else. 

“Just to be fair to everyone. Siguro, voluntarily ang apela ko, kung i-waive ‘yung pagtanggap ng sahod at mga allowances para ‘yung issue mismo eh kahit papaano ma-address na,” he added. 

(Just to be fair to everyone. My appeal is for him to voluntarily waive the receipt of his salary and allowances so that the issue itself can be addressed somehow already.)

The next meeting of the committee is scheduled for April 28, where pending complaints will be reviewed for compliance with form and substance. —AOL, GMA News