For six months, fugitiveSenator Ronald “Bato” de la Rosahad remained absent from Senate sessions, hiding from authorities after reportedly receiving information that the International Criminal Court (ICC) had already issued a warrant for his arrest in November 2025. The former Philippine National Police chief, long associated with the bloody “Operation Tokhang” anti-drug campaign underformer President Rodrigo Duterte, had vanished from public view while legal and political tensions intensified around him.
Then, on Monday, 11 May 2026, de la Rosa suddenly resurfaced inside the Senate.
His dramatic return was not motivated by legislative duty alone. According to political insiders, de la Rosa had been convinced by fellow Senator Alan Peter Cayetano to appear personally in order to strengthen the numbers needed to execute a political coup within the Senate. The objective was clear: removeSenate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto IIIfrom power and install a new Duterte-aligned majority that could shieldVice-President Sara Dutertefrom a looming impeachment conviction.
Former President Rodrigo Duterte (center) awarded to PNP Director-General Ronald Dela Rosa (right) the Major Award for Law Enforcement during the 18th anniversary celebration of Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption. (Public Domain)
As de la Rosa entered the Senate premises, chaos erupted almost immediately. Agents of the National Bureau of Investigation reportedly approached him to serve an arrest order directing him to appear before the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) of the Philippine National Police. Instead of complying, the senator allegedly resisted violently. Witnesses described a heated confrontation in which de la Rosa fought with the agents before breaking away and storming into the Senate session hall furious and shouting invectives.
Image: Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV (Source)
The situation became even more explosive whenformer Senator Antonio Trillanes IVappeared at the Senate lobby carrying what was later confirmed to be a copy of the ICC arrest warrant against de la Rosa. The presence of Trillanes, one of Duterte’s fiercest critics, transformed the Senate grounds into a stage for a political and legal showdown unprecedented in recent Philippine history.
Yet instead of distancing themselves from a fugitive senator facing allegations of crimes against humanity, Duterte-aligned senators warmly welcomed de la Rosa into the chamber. Their support was not merely symbolic. The Senate session itself had allegedly been organized to overthrow Sotto and restructure the chamber’s power balance.
The backdrop to the coup was the overwhelming approval by the House of Representatives of the impeachment complaint against Vice-President Sara Duterte. Once transmitted to the Senate, the impeachment trial would require senators to act as judges. Duterte allies feared that under Sotto’s leadership, an anti-Duterte majority could secure the vice-president’s conviction and permanent political downfall.
To prevent that outcome, a dramatic political realignment was engineered.
Source: Global Research
