Follow-up: Philippine Palace Urges Police to Put Duty First in the Dela Rosa Manhunt: Tracker Teams Formed in All 18 Regions After the Surrender Deadline Lapsed

The Philippine presidential palace on November 3 urged the Philippine National Police (PNP) to uphold its law enforcement responsibilities over personal loyalty to former police chief Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court. Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said police officers should not allow Dela Rosa's former position or his personal connections within the organization to influence their actions in implementing the arrest warrant. Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla earlier acknowledged that Dela Rosa's connections as a former PNP chief and Philippine Military Academy alumnus could pose challenges to efforts to locate and arrest him.

The hunt intensified after a surrender deadline lapsed. The Department of the Interior and Local Government gave Dela Rosa one week to surrender on October 23, alongside a P50-million reward for information leading to his arrest; the deadline expired on October 30. PNP Deputy Chief for Administration Lt. Gen. Wilson Joseph Lopez said the task force had been reorganized into tracker teams in all 18 regions of the country, in addition to a national headquarters task group, with senior personnel deployed to the field, and that no feelers had come for a voluntary surrender. Police said immigration records indicate Dela Rosa remains in the Philippines, border security has been reinforced with a focus on Mindanao, and Remulla has said he believes the senator is hiding in Mindanao under the protection of an armed and powerful group, though no specific individual or group sheltering him has been identified. PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. has directed personnel to exercise sound judgment and maximum restraint should the senator be located.

Dela Rosa served as PNP chief from July 2016 to April 2018 and was the chief enforcer of the Duterte administration's war on drugs. The ICC arrest warrant against him was issued under seal on November 6, 2025 and unsealed on May 11, 2026, alleging he is criminally responsible as an indirect co-perpetrator for the crime against humanity of murder in at least 32 killings. He has been in hiding since May 2026, after escaping the Senate's protective custody. Philippine police separately clarified on November 3 that there is no "shoot-to-kill" order in the manhunt and that serving the warrant will follow due process.

Related: 跟进：菲律宾警方称追捕参议员德拉罗萨没有「格杀令」：将按正当程序执行国际刑事法院逮捕令

Related: 菲律宾：总统府10月26日为5000万比索悬赏辩护，称追缉参议员德拉罗萨属合法行动

Source: Office of the President of the Philippines

Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 图：位于奎松市的菲律宾国家警察总部 Camp Crame。CC0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Camp Crame, headquarters of the Philippine National Police in Quezon City. CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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