The Senate minority bloc on Saturday, October 24, appealed to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to open negotiations with the legal team of Senator Ronald Bato Dela Rosa, seeking a peaceful way out of the standoff that followed the government's P50-million bounty for his capture.
Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla declared Dela Rosa armed and dangerous, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government offered the reward for information leading to his arrest under an International Criminal Court warrant. The minority's appeal is the first formal pushback from inside the Senate since the bounty was announced, according to ASTIG, which noted the government gave the sitting senator one week to surrender.
A call for restraint from the minority bench
We understand the government's desire to resolve this situation in the interest of law and order, the senators said in a joint statement reported by GMA Network. We believe a peaceful resolution that respects our laws and protects lives remains possible.
The senators went further, offering to broker the talks themselves. The Minority stands with our colleague and is ready to help facilitate that discussion, confident that our institutions can uphold the law, protect his rights, and pursue justice without needless loss of life, they said.
The bloc, led by Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, includes Imee Marcos, Robin Padilla, Bong Go, Pia Cayetano, Jinggoy Estrada, Rodante Marcoleta, Camille Villar, Loren Legarda, and Dela Rosa himself. The composition matters: these are not natural rebels against the administration. Most are allies of the President, and several are loyalists of former president Rodrigo Duterte. When this group speaks of dialogue, Malacañang has to listen.
The minority also appealed to everyone with influence on the ground, from the executive and law enforcement to Dela Rosa's family, supporters, and counsel, to exercise restraint and keep communication open, as reported by INQUIRER.net.
The stakes: Remulla's warning of 10,000 deaths
What gives the appeal its weight is the arithmetic of violence already placed on the table. Remulla previously warned that an attempt to arrest Dela Rosa could result in the deaths of 10,000 people. A sitting senator, a former Philippine National Police chief, hiding somewhere in the archipelago with armed followers and a fervent base is not an ordinary fugitive case.
The minority senators welcomed Remulla's stated desire to prevent loss of life. But they also questioned the validity of the ICC warrant itself, reiterating that the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in 2019 under Duterte. That legal argument will be tested in the weeks ahead, and the Torreon law firm has already questioned the legal basis of the reward, as ABS-CBN News reported.
Malacañang answers: the police will not back down
The Palace did not soften its position. Press Officer Claire Castro said Marcos supports the DILG, the Department of Justice, and law enforcement agencies in the arrest effort.
Walang dapat mamatay sa pagganap sa tungkulin ng mga pulis para maaresto si Sen. Bato, kaya huwag na silang magmatigas dahil hindi aatras ang kapulisan natin, Castro said in Filipino. No one should die while the police perform their duty to arrest Senator Bato, so they should stop being stubborn because our police will not back down. Every minute counts, and action must be taken more quickly.
Castro also placed the blame for the bounty on Dela Rosa himself, saying the P50 million would not have been necessary had he not hitched a ride out of the Senate in May, when authorities first tried to arrest him.
The ICC's view: incompetence on both sides
Kristina Conti, assistant to counsel at the ICC, criticized both camps in a Facebook post. Ironically, putting a P50 million bounty on Bato Dela Rosa only highlights the incompetence of the Marcos administration in implementing the ICC warrant, before and now, she said, recalling how the DILG, the National Bureau of Investigation, and the PNP essentially let Bato go in May, and how powerful his backers remain.
Conti also had a direct message for the senator: surrender to Philippine authorities and engage in the ICC proceedings. There, he can expect the highest standards in human rights and due process. And that is priceless, she said.
Why this matters far beyond Manila
Dela Rosa has not been seen in public since the ICC issued its arrest warrant over alleged crimes against humanity linked to the drug war under Duterte, who is in ICC custody in The Hague awaiting trial. For the families of that drug war, many of them in rural barangays where the killings happened, this case is the closest thing to accountability they have seen.
But for the police rank and file, and for the millions of Filipinos who still revere the Duterte years, Dela Rosa is a symbol, and a bounty on him feels like a bounty on an era. That is the fuse the minority is trying to cut. The government insists the fuse is already short. One week, one senator, and a choice between a courtroom and a confrontation.
FAQ
Why is there a P50-million bounty on Senator Bato Dela Rosa?
The DILG offered the reward for information leading to Dela Rosa's capture under an ICC arrest warrant over alleged crimes against humanity linked to the Duterte-era drug war.
What did the Senate minority ask President Marcos to do?
On Saturday, October 24, the minority bloc asked the President and concerned agencies to negotiate with Dela Rosa's counsel toward a peaceful resolution and to exercise restraint.
What did Malacañang say in response?
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said the President supports the arrest efforts, that no one should die while police perform their duty, and that the police will not back down.
Where is Bato Dela Rosa now?
He has remained out of public view since the ICC warrant was issued, after eluding arrest at the Senate in May by hitching a ride.