The prolonged absence of Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa from the Senate is not by choice, Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano said Tuesday, pointing to what he described as threats tied to a supposed International Criminal Court arrest warrant and the government’s failure to guarantee the senator’s rights.
Dela Rosa has not appeared in public or attended any Senate session since November 2025, as reports circulated that the ICC had issued a warrant against him in connection with extrajudicial killings during the Duterte administration’s drug war. An ethics complaint has since been filed against him over the extended absence.
Cayetano said he had spoken with someone in Dela Rosa’s inner circle who conveyed the senator’s sole condition for returning.
“I talked to someone very close to him. Ang sabi, ‘Simple lang sir, ma-assure lang kami ng Philippine government na may day in court siya dito. Kahit arestuhin siya dito sa Pilipinas. Pero ‘yung sasasihin, puwede siyang kunin tapos ipadala na lang sa ibang bansa, ay maninindigan siya,'” Cayetano said.
The minority leader stressed that both sides of the chamber want Dela Rosa back on the floor.
“Klaruhin ko lang ‘yung kay Senator Bato. Lahat ay gustong pumasok siya. Gusto ni Senator Bato pumasok. Ayaw niyang hindi pumasok. Gusto ng minority pumasok siya. Gusto ng majority pumasok siya. Anong problema? May threat sa kanya na walang assurance ang gobyerno na mapoprotektahan ‘yung kanyang karapatan,” he said.
“So hindi po voluntary ang pag-aabsent ni Senator Bato. Gustong gusto niya po pumasok sa session,” Cayetano added.
The ethics committee, chaired by Senator JV Ejercito, has been looking into the matter. Last week, Ejercito called on Dela Rosa to voluntarily waive his Senate salary and allowances for the duration of his absence, and said Dela Rosa’s camp was considering the recommendation.
Cayetano noted that despite the senator’s physical absence, his Senate staff continue to operate normally.
The ICC Office of the Prosecutor has identified Dela Rosa as an alleged co-perpetrator alongside former president Rodrigo Duterte in a crimes against humanity case. Dela Rosa headed the Davao City Police from January 2012 to October 2013, and later led the Philippine National Police from July 2016 to April 2018. Duterte, arrested in the Philippines on March 11, 2025 on an ICC warrant, is currently held in The Hague facing charges of crimes against humanity linked to his administration’s drug war.
