NBI: Senate has duty to produce 'missing' Bato dela Rosa

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) director Melvin Matibag said Thursday it is the responsibility of the Senate to produce Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa as it was the chamber that put him under its protective custody.

“As a lawyer, I will speak na kapag sinabing under protective custody mo, ibig sabihin ikaw ang responsable na ilabas ‘yung tao kapag hiningi po sa 'yo. ‘Yun po ‘yung mga nasa Rules of Court naman po ‘yan,” Matibag said at a Palace briefing.

(As a lawyer, I will say that when you are under protective custody, it means you are responsible for presenting the person when asked. Those are the ones in the Rules of Court.)

When Dela Rosa appeared at the Senate for the first time since November 2025 on Monday, senators granted a motion placing him under the protective custody of the chamber.

This, as the International Criminal Court (ICC) confirmed that it has issued a warrant of arrest for Dela Rosa for his role in the Duterte administration’s war on drugs as former chief of the Philippine National Police.

Earlier in the day, an unnamed senator confirmed that Dela Rosa is no longer in the Senate.

According to the senator, a member of the Senate secretariat said Dela Rosa left the Senate premises early Thursday morning. The secretariat staff also said Dela Rosa exited at around 2:30 a.m.

Senate responsibility

Asked if the Senate has the responsibility for Dela Rosa’s location, Matibag said, “Yes, nabanggit ko po ‘yan doon sa pagpupulong namin pribado at the same time [sa] public din ay sinabi rin po natin ‘yan.”

(Yes, I mentioned that in our private meeting and at the same time, we also said that in public.)

The NBI director also said it is the Department of Justice (DOJ) that has to determine if there were senators who would be held liable for Dela Rosa’s slip out.

Matibag also lamented the "escape" of Dela Rosa while under Senate’s protective custody.

“Malungkot po ‘yun dahil I feel na dapat ang amin pong usapan diyan it should be honored po ‘yan ‘eh dahil ako naman po naniniwala na ang ating mga senador… Sila po humingi ng ganoon at ang pagkakaalam naman natin ay poproteksyunan nila hindi lamang po si Senator Bato kundi ‘yun pong ating mismong mga batas at konstitusyon na umiiral,” he added.

(That's sad because I feel that our discussion should’ve been honored because I trust our senators... They asked for such and as far as we know, they would protect not only Senator Bato but also our laws and the Constitution.)

Earlier on Thursday, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos held a meeting with several officials regarding the Senate incident.

Matibag, who was in the meeting, said Marcos gave orders to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter.

“[Ang bilin ay] siguraduhin na ang imbestigasyon ay makatotohanan at parehas at lumabas kung sino talaga ang mga may pagkukulang at kung ano talaga ang may mga pananagutan at siguraduhing tawagin at panagutin ‘yung mga taong may dapat panagutan sa pangyayari pong ito,” he added.

(The President's order was to ensure that the investigation would be honest and fair, identify who the real culprits are, and ensure that those responsible for this incident will be held accountable.)

Marcos earlier said the government was not behind the shooting incident at the Senate. The President also denied giving instructions to arrest Dela Rosa. — RSJ, GMA News