The International Criminal Court has declined to confirm reports of an arrest warrant issued against Senator Ronald dela Rosa. ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah stated that official news is only on their channels, noting the sole open case against former President Rodrigo Duterte. Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla claimed over the weekend that the warrant had been issued.
In a message to reporters on Monday afternoon, ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah said, “No, the ICC can’t confirm such news.” He added, “ICC news can be found only on ICC official communications channels and press releases, where you could see that only one case to date has been opened, against Mr. Duterte,” referring to the ongoing proceedings against detained former president Rodrigo Duterte.
Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla stated over the weekend that an arrest warrant had been issued by the ICC against Dela Rosa, known as Bato. However, the ICC has not released any public document on the matter. No other government agency or official confirmed Remulla’s claim, with the Department of Justice saying it was still verifying the information.
The ICC does not always disclose if an arrest warrant has been issued against an individual. In the case of Duterte, the public redacted version of his warrant of arrest was released only after he was surrendered to the ICC.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has warned the public about “false and deceptive” statements online being attributed to Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo on the alleged ICC arrest warrant against Dela Rosa. “For accurate and verified information regarding the statements of the members of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, please refer to the Court’s official website, or its official accounts on Facebook, X/Twitter, and Instagram,” the SC Public Information Office said.
The SC had categorically denied the social media posts that falsely quote the Chief Justice regarding the ICC arrest warrant. “Please be advised that these posts are false. The Chief Justice has not issued any statement on this matter,” SC spokesperson Camille Sue Mae Ting said in a statement. The posts, which included an elaborate quote purportedly from Gesmundo, claimed that the SC had issued an order requiring an ICC arrest warrant for Dela Rosa to undergo a mandatory process and be decided upon by the high court first. The Chief Justice also allegedly said that the situation involving the previous arrest warrant issued by the ICC against former president Duterte “cannot be repeated” because the high tribunal had not yet passed a “strong law” (new rules on extradition) on the implementation of foreign arrest warrants at that time.