MANILA, Philippines – There’s no holding back for drug war “architect” Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa to testify in the Senate’s parallel investigation on Monday, October 28, regarding former president Rodrigo Duterte’s infamous campaign that resulted in thousands of death.
“I don’t care kung anong sabihin nila. Hindi ako ang taong pa-cute-cute, hindi ako ang taong magpa-disente kasi nga umiiwas ng bashing or what. Basta sa akin, lalabas ang katotohanan. Prangkahan tayo. Lalabas ang katotohanan,” Dela Rosa told reporters on Friday, October 25.
(I don’t care what they say. I’m not the type to act cute or to be prim and proper just to avoid bashing or anything like that. For me, the truth will come out. Let’s be straightforward. The truth will come out.)
Dela Rosa, who previously sought to have his own panel conduct the investigation, will now appear before the Senate blue ribbon committee, offering himself as a resource person.
“I am also offering myself as a resource person. I’m not just a member of the panel. They can ask me. They can interrogate me. They can interpellate me anytime they want,” Dela Rosa said.
“I won’t feel offended,” he added. His earlier pronouncement wanting to conduct his own probe drew criticisms because he himself has been implicated by witnesses in the ongoing House probe.
As the Duterte administration’s first police chief, Dela Rosa was regarded as the muscle of that infamous campaign. From July 2016 to October 2018 — a period that mostly covered Dela Rosa’s stint as PNP chief — the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency said at least 4,999 were killed in police anti-drug operations.
“The public deserves to know the truth. Malaman natin ‘yan. Just watch and learn this Monday. Malalaman niyo ‘yan kung paano natin palabasin ‘yung katotohanan,” he said. (We’ll find out. Just watch and learn this Monday. You’ll see how we will reveal the truth.)
Will Duterte attend?
The Senate blue ribbon committee also invited Duterte to Monday’s probe. However, Senate Minority Leader Koko Pimentel, who will lead the investigation, said that he has “no idea” if the former president will attend. Several families of drug war victims are also expected to be present.
“All senators are resource persons, especially if they volunteer what they know about the issues being discussed,” Pimentel told Rappler in a text message on Sunday, October 27, when asked for a comment on Dela Rosa’s willingness to testify.
Dela Rosa said that Duterte will attend the Senate hearing, but the Duterte camp has not yet issued any statement. The former president skipped the House probe on October 22, citing health reasons, although he promised to appear at the House probe in November.
“I will not be extra careful as far as the truth is concerned. I don’t care kung sinong masasaktan sa aking pananalita basta ang habol ko lang dito is katotohanan, lalabas ang katotohanan (if they will be hurt by my words as long as my goal here is the truth. The truth will come out),” Dela Rosa said.
At a previous House probe, retired police colonel Royina Garma directly implicated the former president in the extrajudicial killings carried out by the police during his administration. Garma said that Duterte called her to a meeting in May 2016, in which she was told “he needed someone capable of implementing the war on drugs on a national scale, replicating the Davao model.”
Duterte and Dela Rosa denied the existence of the supposed Davao template. “I have no idea on that. There was none,” Dela Rosa said.
Dela Rosa’s involvement in the drug war has placed him among the accused officials of the Duterte administration facing allegations of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court (ICC). He had also confirmed that his office has received communications from the ICC, but admitted that he is ignoring the international body.
If Duterte will attend on Monday, he would face former Senator Leila de Lima, who was politically persecuted during his administration and spent seven years in jail. On June 24, the court cleared De Lima of the third and final charge of conspiracy to commit drug trading. – Rappler.com