Former President Rodrigo Duterte and Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa. (MALACAÑANG FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — Was the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte part of the Philippines’ commitment to the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol)?
Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who served as the first Philippine National Police chief of the Duterte administration, on Saturday said it’s“b***s**t!”
At a rally at the Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila on Saturday to call for the former president’s release and repatriation, Dela Rosa cited his experience as PNP chief from 2016 to 2018.
“[N]aging Chief PNP ako. Alam ko ano ang papel ng Interpol sa mundo. Huwag niyo ako lokohin. Commitment sa Interpol? Bu**s**t! Presidente ka ng Pilipinas! Magpa-pressure ka sa Interpol?” Dela Rosa said.
(I was PNP chief before. I know the role the Interpol plays in the world. Don’t fool me. Commitment to the Interpol? You are the president of the Philippines! You’ll allow yourself to be pressured by the Interpol?)
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. clarified that Duterte’s arrest on Tuesday was carried out out due to the Philippines’ commitment to the Interpol, which helped arrest Filipino fugitives overseas.
“Pero ang lumalabas, mas gigil na gigil at atat na atat sila kaysa Interpol, kaysa ICC. Atat na atat sila na ibyahe si Pangulong Duterte. Bakit? ‘Di ba katungkulan ng ating gobyerno, ayon sa ating Konstitusyon, to serve and protect the Filipino people?” the senator added.
(But, it appears they were much more eager than the Interpol, than the ICC. They were rushing to take President Duterte. Why? Isn’t the duty of our government, according to the Constitution, to serve and protect the Filipino people?)
Another Duterte ally, Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go claimed that the arrest was an affront to the country’s sovereignty and that local courts were fully capable of handling domestic matters.
International law experts at a University of the Philippines (UP) College of Law colloquium, however, said the ICC arrest and the functioning of the Philippine judicial system were not mutually exclusive.
Duterte was arrested by authorities on Tuesday due to a warrant from the ICC.
He was flown out to The Hague, The Netherlands on the same day to face the international tribunal for crimes against humanity allegedly committed while the country was a member of the ICC from November 2011 to March 2019.
According to the warrant, the case was in the context of the administration’s drug war.
Government data said Duterte’s bloody anti-narcotics campaign left at least 6,000 people dead, but human rights watchdogs place the death toll between 12,000 and 30,000 from 2016 to 2019.
The ICC set Duterte’s confirmation of charges hearing on September 23, 2025.