What was once a commitment to serving the people was a promise set in stone, an absolute bet. However, such promises were only concepts spouted about to win a seat in Congress, something we're hushed to in a cradle. But if a promise as simple as the rights of the people cannot be given, then karma can only be the promise that justice lies dormant. The recent arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC) made against Sen. Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa is exactly the glimpse of poetic justice our promises deserved—the time has come to mark the person in the narrative.
Since July 2024, Senator Dela Rosa has said that the ICC can do whatever it wants and that he is not bothered by its actions. In one of his interviews, he would state that if they want to do something, they might as well just do it. Two years of claiming to be 'unbothered' culminated in a frantic return to the Senate floor today. Unbothered he was by not attending Senate sessions in person back in November 2025; now, he bursts through the doors, full of pity and heightened emotions.
Like his name, he is characterized as bold and firm, not backing down from what 'justice' he promotes. He speaks loudly and clearly, and he vows to evade the ICC's arrest warrant, recognizing only local court arrest orders. If the operatives manage to corner him, then the ICC operatives can arrest him. With the words slipping out of his tongue, he would be right for once as he was pursued by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) operatives.
Now, he has two options: step up and be accountable, or step down and hide from the authorities. Unfortunately, the latter wins. It is starkly obvious that the once immovable senator now runs and seeks protection rather than confront what is right in front of him.
According to recent reports, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has not received any official arrest warrant for Bato. Despite this, Trillanes claimed to have a copy of the arrest warrant, which he said was the reason for his presence on the Senate premises. The arrest warrant contained information regarding Bato's alleged criminal responsibility as an indirect co-perpetrator in the war on drugs campaign of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Even if the warrant is under investigation, whether it is official or not, the pressure on the Bato himself was more than enough to make him run. Officials like Bato may continue to intimidate and express it publicly, but they cannot escape accountability when it pricks right back. The cradle has been rocked, and what was once a tough general is now a man in hiding.
Escaping will never be the last resort, even if the public says otherwise—man up.
