MANILA, Philippines—Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV arrived at the Senate on Monday, May 11, carrying a copy of the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.
Trillanes said he was there because dela Rosa had publicly challenged him—on national television—to accompany authorities and personally handcuff him if a warrant were issued.
“Nandirito ako dahil nag request si Bato publicly, sa national TV, na samahan ko daw ‘yong [arresting team] pag aarestuhin siya,” Trillanes told reporters. ”That’s why I’m here. Andito ‘yong NBI, aarestuhin siya.”
(I’m here because Bato publicly requested—on national TV—that I accompany the arresting team when they arrest him… That’s why I’m here. The NBI is here, and he’s going to be arrested.)
In another interview, Trillanes said: “Eh sabi niya, di ba, ‘Make my day’.”
READ: Trillanes brings ICC warrant vs Dela Rosa
The confrontation inside the Senate complex came after months of speculation over dela Rosa’s possible arrest over his alleged role in the Duterte administration’s anti-drug campaign.
It was also his first public appearance since Nov. 10, 2025, days before Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla disclosed that the ICC had issued a warrant of arrest against him.
The ICC confirmed the authenticity of the warrant on Monday.
“The International Criminal Court confirms that the document published by national authorities of the Republic of the Philippines and circulated in the media is indeed a formal ICC document,” the court said.
READ: ICC publicly confirms arrest warrant vs Bato dela Rosa
National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents later attempted to serve the warrant inside the Senate complex. Closed-circuit television footage later played during the plenary session showed dela Rosa running through Senate corridors as NBI operatives chased him.
READ: Bato dela Rosa returns to Senate, claims NBI tried to block him
At one point during the chase, the senator slipped but quickly stood up and continued running toward the session hall. Dela Rosa later claimed he “wrestled” with agents who allegedly tried to stop him from entering the plenary hall.
The Senate was eventually placed on lockdown as senators later voted to place dela Rosa under protective custody while he pursued legal remedies.
Outside the Senate complex, supporters shouted “NBI go home!” as riot police and barbed wire surrounded the compound.
By evening, dela Rosa—who for years had publicly dismissed fears of arrest—was appealing to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for protection.
“President PBBM, I am a Filipino. I am your constituent,” dela Rosa said during a video call with supporters outside the Senate. “Wala kang personal na galit sa akin, alam mo ’yan. Sana naman bilang Pilipino, protektahan mo rin ako.”
(You have no personal grudge against me, you know that. I hope that as a fellow Filipino, you will also protect me.)
READ: Dela Rosa seeks protection from Marcos: ‘I’m your constituent’
In another interview the following day, dela Rosa made a longer appeal to Marcos.
“Nag-a-appeal ako sa kanya, Mr. President, sir, alam kong wala kang personal na galit sa akin, alam ko ’yan, pero sana naman bilang ama ng ating bansa, alagaan mo ’yung mga anak, kami. Alagaan mo ang lahat ng mga Pilipino. Sana [the government] take care of its people. Sana alagaan mo kami, ’wag mo kaming ibigay doon sa mga dayuhan,” he said.
(I am appealing to him, Mr. President, sir. I know you have no personal grudge against me. But as the father of the nation, please take care of your children—us. Take care of all Filipinos. I hope the government will take care of its people. Please take care of us, do not hand us over to foreigners.)
He added: “Tao lang ako (I am only human). My appeal to the President is sincere.”
READ: Dela Rosa to Marcos: Protect all Filipinos, it’s your moral obligation
When asked what kind of protection he wanted from Marcos, dela Rosa answered: “Yung sundin lang yung legal na proseso. Sana advise-an ni Pangulong BBM ‘yong kaniyang mga law enforcement agencies na sundin naman yung sinabi ng Supreme Court.”
(That they simply follow the legal process. I hope President BBM advises law enforcement agencies to follow what the Supreme Court said.)
His remarks contrasted with years of public statements in which he repeatedly projected confidence that the ICC could neither compel him nor enforce its orders in the Philippines.
From concern to defiance
As early as November 2021, dela Rosa acknowledged feeling uneasy about the ICC probe into drug war killings.
“Normal ‘yan [mag-alala]. Kaunti. Nag-aalala,” he said during a CNN Philippines interview. “Problema naman talaga ‘yan kung tutuusin. Alangan namang sabihin kong hindi problema ‘yan.”
(That’s normal. A little. I’m worried. It really is a problem, if you think about it. I can’t exactly say it’s not a problem.)
READ: Bato Dela Rosa admits feeling ‘a little worried’ about ICC probe on drug war killings
Still, he said he was prepared to face the investigation.
“That’s really a problem, but I am ready (to face it). No doubt about it, I am ready,” he said.
Even while acknowledging concern, dela Rosa also argued that the ICC should not be allowed to formally investigate in the Philippines, saying this would undermine what he described as the country’s “perfectly functioning” justice system.
By July 2023, his public tone had turned more defiant as the ICC moved forward with its investigation.
“Wala akong kaba. Wala akong pakialam,” dela Rosa said before the ICC appeals chamber ruled on the Philippine government’s attempt to halt the continuation of the probe.
(I’m not nervous. I don’t care.)
READ: Unfazed Bato dela Rosa, Rodrigo Duterte on looming ICC ruling: ‘Walang kaba, walang pakialam’
He also insisted any ICC action would ultimately be unenforceable in the Philippines because the country had already withdrawn from the Rome Statute.
“Whatever nga anong kalalabasan ng ginagawa nilang investigation, ano magiging resolution diyan sa complaint against us ay hindi naman ‘yan ma-e-enforce sa atin dahil nobody will enforce it, ‘di ba?” he said.
(Whatever the outcome of their investigation may be, whatever resolution comes out of the complaint against us, it cannot be enforced here because nobody will enforce it, right?)
Even as he said he would limit his foreign travel, dela Rosa publicly challenged authorities to arrest him.
“If they can’t protect me, I will protect myself,” he said.
Asked how, he answered: “Hanapin nyo ako. Hanapin niyo ako. Nasa Pilipinas ako. I am within the territorial jurisdiction of the Philippines.”
(Find me. Find me. I’m in the Philippines.)
READ: ‘Let’s see if they can arrest me,” says Bato de la Rosa after ICC verdict
He also rejected suggestions that he would hide if the ICC issued a warrant against him.
“Ah, hindi ah. Bakit ako magtatago? Senador ako ng Pilipinas. Bakit ako magtatago? Hanapin nila ako,” the senator said. “Kung mahanap nila ako, then ang next step na ay arestuhin na ako. So, tingnan na natin kung maaresto nila ako.”
(No. Why would I hide? I am a senator of the Philippines. Why would I hide? Let them find me. If they do find me, then the next step would be to arrest me. So let’s see if they can arrest me.)
Months later, after Marcos disclosed that the government was studying the possibility of returning to the ICC, dela Rosa said political conditions could still shift.
“I feel that I should be ready for any eventuality because the political situation in the Philippines is very fluid, so I have to be ready,” he said in November 2023.
READ: ‘I should be ready’: Dela Rosa on possible return of PH to ICC
Still, he drew a distinction between Philippine courts and foreign tribunals.
“As I’ve said, I am willing to face Filipino courts. I am willing to be tried by Filipino courts. But by a foreign body, I am not willing.”
‘Tell it to our face’
By early 2024, reports that ICC investigators had supposedly entered the Philippines pushed dela Rosa to publicly seek clarity from the Marcos administration.
“What I am asking from this government is to be man enough to please tell us what the real score is. Just inform us,” he said in January 2024.
“Let’s be frank. Let’s talk man to man. If you want us to be investigated and get imprisoned, then tell us to our face. Don’t tell us one thing while doing another thing behind our backs,” he added.
Addressing Marcos directly, dela Rosa said: “You are our President. You are our leader. Tell us so we know what to do.”
READ: Dela Rosa to Palace: Man up on ICC probers’ visit
At the same time, he said he would follow the government’s lead if it chose to cooperate with the ICC.
“If the President says we will cooperate, then I will cooperate [with the ICC]. I’m only a citizen of this Republic… so I will obey,” he said.
Still, dela Rosa also acknowledged his fear of imprisonment.
“Hindi ako takot na sabihin mo na meron akong na-commit na kasalanan. No. Takot ako na makulong dahil kawawa ang mga apo ko at hindi ko na makikita,” he said during an ANC interview.
(I’m not afraid of being accused of wrongdoing. No. I’m afraid of going to jail because I pity my grandchildren, and I may no longer see them.)
“’Yun lang ang akin. Buti kung makukulong ka lang dito sa Pilipinas, eh kung ikukulong ka doon sa The Hague? Paano makakabisita ngayon ang apo mo? They will grow up lolo-less.”
(That’s my concern. It would be different if you were jailed only in the Philippines, but what if you’re jailed in The Hague? How will your grandchildren visit you? They’ll grow up without a grandfather.)
READ: Bato dela Rosa admits: ‘I am afraid of going to jail’
As discussions about possible ICC warrants intensified in 2024, dela Rosa’s exchanges with Trillanes also became increasingly confrontational. In April 2024, he criticized alleged efforts to convince police officers to cooperate with ICC investigators.
“I don’t know kung saan galing ni Trillanes iyong kaniyang impormasyon,” dela Rosa said. “Kawawa yung mga tao na pinipilit niya na mag-cooperate.”
(I don’t know where Trillanes is getting his information… I pity the people he’s supposedly forcing to cooperate.)
READ: Dela Rosa airs view on ICC’s reported talks with cops on drug war
Weeks later came on May 7, 2024, the statement that would later resurface after the Senate confrontation.
“Go ahead, make my day, Mr. Trillanes! Sige kang ngalngal [nang] ngalngal dyan ng ICC. Sige—go ahead. Kahit sumama ka pa, mag-serve ng warrant, ikaw mag-posas sa akin,” dela Rosa said during a press briefing.
(Go ahead, make my day, Mr. Trillanes! You keep yapping about the ICC. Go ahead. You can even join them in serving the warrant—you can be the one to handcuff me.)
READ: ICC warrant coming? Bato dares Trillanes: Go ahead, make my day
At the same briefing, dela Rosa also said: “I leave my faith to God. Kung anong sabihin ni Lord—na hanggang diyan ka lang… makukulong ka na, wala akong magagawa.”
(I leave my fate to God. Whatever the Lord says—if He says this is as far as you go, that you will be jailed—then there is nothing I can do.)
Drug war, ICC, and Marcos
By mid-2024, dela Rosa said rights violations occurred during the Duterte administration’s anti-drug campaign, while maintaining that responsibility should be determined on a case-by-case basis.
“Hindi ko sinabi na walang nangyayaring human rights violation during war on drugs. Aminado tayo diyan na merong mga kaso na talagang na-violate ‘yong right ng tao,” he said during a Senate forum in June 2024.
(I never said there were no human rights violations during the war on drugs. I admit there were cases where people’s rights were violated.)
“Kasi kung wala, eh ‘di dapat hindi na kakasuhan ‘yong mga pulis na gumawa ng kalokohan,” he added.
(If there were none, then police officers who committed wrongdoing should not have been charged.)
READ: Dela Rosa admits rights abuses in ‘drug war’: Probe each case separately
Still, he defended Duterte against accusations that the former president ordered abuses.
“Walang gagong leader na mag-utos na gumawa kayo ng violation sa batas,” dela Rosa said.
(No foolish leader would order people to violate the law.)
Months later, dela Rosa again downplayed the ICC’s moves.
“We have no control over them. Kung ano ang gusto nilang gawin, eh ‘di gawin nila,” he said in July 2024.
(We have no control over them. Whatever they want to do, let them do it.)
“Bakit ako maba-bother? Hayaan mo na sila. I’m not bothered. Hayaan mo sila, go ahead.”
(Why should I be bothered? Let them be. I’m not bothered.)
READ: Dela Rosa: ICC can do whatever it wants, I’m not bothered
At one point, however, he also said he was willing to talk to investigators while continuing to reject ICC jurisdiction.
“Kung gusto nilang mag-interview, they can interview me anytime… but it doesn’t mean na yumuyuko ako sa kanilang jurisdiction,” he said in August 2024.
(If they want to interview me, they can interview me anytime. But that does not mean I am bowing to their jurisdiction.)
READ: ‘Bato’ willing to be interviewed by ICC prosecutors
During the same period, dela Rosa also began publicly questioning the Marcos administration’s consistency on the issue.
“I am not sure of the definite stand of the government. What the President and his cabinet are saying is of two things: the President seems to have lost control over the cabinet, or the President is the one who double-talks over greenlighting what the cabinet does,” he said.
“I am hoping that the words of the President shall prevail, and I hope he clarifies what the government’s stand is,” he added.
READ: Dela Rosa to Marcos: Stand your ground on ICC investigations
By October 2024, dela Rosa also said he had no regrets about the Duterte administration’s anti-drug campaign.
“No, no regrets,” he said. “If you are going to give me the chance to do it again, I will do it again.”
READ: Dela Rosa on leading drug war: No regrets, I’ll do it again
Duterte’s arrest changes tone
The political atmosphere shifted in March 2025 after former president Rodrigo Duterte was arrested and flown to The Hague. Even before Duterte’s arrest, dela Rosa had intensified his criticism of the ICC itself.
“ICC is not all about justice. ICC is about control,” he said during a televised senatorial face-off in February 2025.
“They are about controlling all the member nations of the ICC,” he added.
On March 11, 2025, dela Rosa joined Duterte in filing a petition before the Supreme Court seeking to stop the Philippine government from cooperating with the ICC investigation.
The petition asked the high court to issue a temporary restraining order and block government agencies from assisting the ICC, including in the enforcement of arrest warrants and cooperation with Interpol.
A day later, after Duterte’s arrest, reporters found dela Rosa’s Senate office locked while staff members said they did not know where he was. Hours later, dela Rosa resurfaced publicly and spoke for the first time after Duterte’s arrest.
“If all legal remedies are exhausted and still justice is to no avail, then I don’t want my family to suffer from cops looking for a heartbeat. I am ready to join the old man, hoping that they would allow me to take care of him,” he said.
READ: Bato dela Rosa ‘ready to join’ Rodrigo Duterte in The Hague
Asked separately about the possibility that the ICC could later issue a warrant against him, dela Rosa said he was ready to submit if a warrant were served.
“I will live a normal life unless a warrant is being served. If there is a warrant, I’m ready,” he said.
READ: Dela Rosa ‘ready’ to join Duterte, but not that soon
At the same time, he denied hiding, saying he was “campaigning in the mountains of Surigao and Agusan.”
The following day, dela Rosa said he was prepared to defend himself before ICC judges if necessary.
“I am prepared. The most important thing is that once I arrive there in the ICC, once the trial begins, I can defend myself just in case my lawyer cannot,” he said. He added that if no ICC-accredited Filipino lawyer would represent him, “I can defend myself when needed even if I am not a lawyer.”
At the same time, his frustration toward the Marcos administration became more pronounced after Duterte’s arrest.
“I am truly saddened. I am saddened not only for myself, not only for President Duterte, but I am also saddened for the entire Filipino people, for the entire Filipino nation, that we have a president who does not keep his word,” dela Rosa said.
“We feel betrayed because he personally told me at Malacañang that ‘not even a hair of yours would be touched by the ICC.’”
READ: Bato Dela Rosa claims he was promised ICC ‘won’t touch a hair’ on him
He also questioned the administration’s explanation that Duterte’s arrest was tied to the Philippines’ obligations to Interpol.
“How can they make me believe that? We have a saying: ‘The water cannot rise above its source.’ What is the source of authority of Interpol? It’s the ICC warrant. So, what is their basis now? The ICC warrant.”
“That’s a very lame excuse,” he added.
Days later, dela Rosa said he skipped a Partido Demokratiko Pilipino event in Hong Kong after allegedly receiving information that warrants had already been prepared against both him and Duterte.
“Hindi ako sumama sa Hong Kong dahil sa gabi na iyon, alas tres ng madaling araw dapat ang biyahe papuntang Hong Kong, pero mayroong nag-leak sa akin ng information. Hindi pa rin tulog ang Diyos,” dela Rosa said during a rally in Manila.
(I did not go to Hong Kong that night. My flight was supposed to leave at 3 a.m., but someone leaked information to me. God never sleeps.)
He added: “Ang sabi na, ‘Sabihan mo sila na may warrant na si President Duterte at si Bato. Huhulihin sila pagbalik nila dito galing sa Hong Kong.’”
(I was told: ‘Tell them there’s already a warrant for President Duterte and Bato. They will be arrested once they return from Hong Kong.’)
READ: Dela Rosa on HK absence: ‘I got info ahead of ICC arrest warrant’
Despite earlier statements that he was prepared to surrender, dela Rosa’s public remarks later evolved as discussions about possible ICC action against him intensified.
By March 19, he acknowledged he was keeping his location secret.
“Dito lang ako. Dito lang sa Pilipinas. Secret tayo.” (I’m just here in the Philippines. It’s a secret.)
That same week, dela Rosa said hiding from arrest was among the options he was considering.
“That is one of the things we are considering,” he said when asked whether going into hiding was part of his possible courses of action.
He later explained why his position had changed.
“If we can’t find justice in our own country, why would you surrender?” dela Rosa said. “We’ll see. If we find even a glimmer of hope—that the Supreme Court will truly stand by its independence and that the Senate will also take a firm stand—then I will evaluate.”
Even while discussing possible hiding, however, dela Rosa also said he would not resist arrest physically.
“How will you fight against the Philippine National Police? I know the power, the might of the Philippine National Police because I’ve been the chief of the PNP,” he said.
“So why fight? It’s useless if you fight back.”
READ: Bato Dela Rosa mulls going into hiding amid possible ICC arrest
By March 25, dela Rosa said he would not voluntarily submit to arrest if the warrant were issued by the ICC rather than Philippine courts.
“But if their warrant of arrest is issued by the ICC, I won’t let them arrest me,” he said. “If they corner me, then they can arrest me. But if they don’t, they can’t get me.”
READ: Bato Dela Rosa mulls going into hiding amid possible ICC arrest
‘Tao lang ako’
Even after reports emerged in November 2025 that the International Criminal Court (ICC) had issued a warrant against him, Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa continued to publicly defend the Duterte administration’s anti-drug campaign.
“If you are going to give me the chance to do it again, I will do it again,” he said.
He also returned to publicly challenging authorities to arrest him.
“I am a senator of the Philippines. Let them find me. If they do, then the next step will be to arrest me,” dela Rosa said. “I am ready.”
By May 11, 2026, dela Rosa—who for years had publicly questioned the ICC’s authority over the Philippines—was under Senate protective custody after National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents attempted to serve an ICC warrant against him inside the Senate complex.
READ: Bato dela Rosa under Senate custody as ICC arrest looms
The same politician who once challenged Trillanes to “make my day” was now questioning why the former senator was carrying a copy of the warrant.
“Hindi ko alam kung anong papel niya sa mundo; bakit siya may dala-dalang warrant? Hindi naman siya miyembro ng ICC; hindi naman siya miyembro ng Interpol,” dela Rosa said Monday.
(I don’t know what role he plays in this world and why he’s carrying a warrant. He’s not a member of the ICC. He’s not a member of Interpol.)
And after years of publicly insisting that the ICC could not enforce its actions against him in the Philippines, dela Rosa ended Monday with a direct appeal to the president.
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“Tao lang ako,” he said. “My appeal to the President is sincere.” /dm
