House Senior Deputy Minority Leader Leila de Lima on Tuesday criticized Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, calling the incident at the Senate involving a chase and his fall on the stairs “pathetic” and laughable.
Speaking at the House of Representatives, de Lima questioned what happened to Dela Rosa’s earlier bravado when he challenged former senator Antonio Trillanes IV to have him arrested and handcuffed, using the phrase “make my day.”
According to de Lima, Trillanes merely acted on Dela Rosa’s own challenge when he went to the Senate the previous day.
The lawmaker said she also felt pity for Dela Rosa because he was already aware of the risks surrounding the reported warrant of arrest from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which had long been discussed publicly.
De Lima claimed Dela Rosa knew about the alleged warrant, prompting him to stay out of public view for several months before returning to the Senate.
She alleged that the senator returned not to work but in connection with an alleged plan to challenge the current Senate leadership.
De Lima also expressed concern over the Senate allegedly being used as a sanctuary or refuge despite no law specifically allowing such protection, saying protective custody only exists as a tradition under limited circumstances.
On parliamentary immunity, de Lima said the protection only applies to offenses punishable by less than six years imprisonment and would not cover crimes against humanity, which carry the penalty of reclusion perpetua.
The minority lawmaker added that Dela Rosa’s actions could damage the image of the Senate institution, recalling that she did not seek protection from the Senate during her 2017 arrest over illegal drug charges she described as fabricated.
