BY ALEX ALAGON
THE COUNSEL for former President Rodrigo Duterte dismissed the claim by Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla that the International Criminal Court (ICC) had already issued an arrest warrant against Senator Ronald dela Rosa as “baseless and lacking any credible evidence.”
In an exclusive radio interview with DZRH on Saturday, Nov. 8, Remulla asserted that the ICC had issued a warrant against the senator, stating the case was connected to the previous administration’s war on drugs.
However, Atty. Nicholas Kaufman described the assertion as a “figment of [Remulla’s] fertile imagination.”
Kaufman argued that any such action would be illogical given the pending jurisdictional issues before the international tribunal.
“It goes against all common sense and prosecutorial logic for the ICC to issue further warrants… until the issue of its ability to exercise jurisdiction over the so-called war on drugs has been finally resolved on appeal.”
Malacañang spokesperson Claire Castro stated that the Marcos administration has yet to receive any official confirmation regarding the reported warrant, adding that the government is currently focused on disaster response for Typhoon ‘Uwan.’
Atty. Israelito P. Torreon, counsel for Senator Dela Rosa, also urged “caution and restraint” without the ICC releasing the verified information itself.
Torreon reiterated that while they were aware of the circulating reports, they lacked independent confirmation of the warrant’s accuracy.
He emphasized that if the reports were proven true, they trust the Philippine Government would follow the rule of law and ensure the action would pass through the “proper local judicial confirmation process consistent with our Constitution, due process, and the sovereign rights of the Republic of the Philippines.”
