Torre: Law enforcers cannot pick which warrants to implement

Former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Nicolas Torre III on Friday said law enforcers cannot choose which warrants they will implement as a government manhunt is underway to arrest Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa.

Torre, now Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) General Manager, said implementing warrants is an institutional duty of police officers and should not be treated as a personal matter.

"We have to respect the process, let the systems work. Because police as a law enforcement, hindi po puwedeng mamili ka kung ano ang kung alin ang implement mo, alin ang hindi," he said during a Kapihan sa Manila Hotel forum.

(We have to respect the process, let the systems work. Because police as law enforcement, you can't choose what to implement and what not to implement.)

"Because at the end of the day, the job of the police is not to judge the case but to implement the processes, and in this case, the warrants," he added.

Torre led the arrest of former president Rodrigo Duterte in March 2025 and religious leader Apollo Quiboloy in September 2024.

He also joked that the MMDA could only help arrest Dela Rosa if the senator was hiding in areas under MMDA jurisdiction such as waterways, esteros, roads, canals, or landfills.

Asked about reports that the Department of Justice requested CCTV footage related to Dela Rosa's alleged escape from the Senate, Torre said MMDA is ready to cooperate with investigating authorities.

"Institutional 'yan eh. It's not about a person. It's not about me. It's not about Senator Bato," Torre said.

(That's institutional. It's not about a person. It's not about me. It's not about Senator Bato.)

"It is about a process. It is about a system. It is about a law. And it is about a job na desisyon mo na lang, personally kung ikaw ang inutusan, whether you do it or not," he added.

(It is about a process. It is about a system. It is about a law. And it is about a job that is up to you to decide, personally, if you are the one who is ordered, whether you do it or not.)

Earlier, the ICC confirmed that the tribunal has issued an arrest warrant for Dela Rosa in connection with the killings under the war on drugs.

While the Senate building was on lockdown and Dela Rosa was under the protective custody of the upper chamber on May 13, gunshots were fired inside the building of the legislative body.

Hours later, Dela Rosa left the Senate. — VDV, GMA News