The Philippine National Police (PNP) assures that arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa will only be serve once a local court issued an order.

PNP spokesperson Police Brigadier General Randulf Tuaño said this should be passed through Interpol and through the Philippine Center on Transnational Crime and if there is a local court order.

Dela Rosa’s lawyers filed an urgent manifestation with omnibus motion for guidance on the legal effect of the arrest warrant from the ICC.

They also reiterated their appeal for the issuance of a temporary restraining order or writ of preliminary injunction prohibiting the arrest or transfer of Dela Rosa to any foreign tribunal without prior judicial authorization.

The ICC on Monday confirmed that the tribunal issued a warrant of arrest for Dela Rosa, who was PNP chief during the term of former president Rodrigo Duterte, in connection with the killings under the administration’s war on drugs.

Dela Rosa has been absent in the Senate since November 11, 2025, after Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla alleged that the ICC issued a warrant of arrest against him over the previous administration’s drug war.

He showed up on Monday to attend the Senate session, in which he was among the 13 who voted to unseat Senator Vicente Sotto III as Senate president and put Alan Peter Cayetano in his place.

Members of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) reportedly tried to serve the arrest warrant against the dela Rosa in the Senate premises but failed.