MANILA, Philippines–The Supreme Court on Tuesday in Manila, Philippines, denied Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa’s petition to force the Department of Justice and other agencies to release an alleged International Criminal Court arrest warrant linked to the government’s anti-illegal drugs campaign.
In a resolution, the Court ruled that the petition lacked sufficient basis to justify an order directing the release of any alleged ICC warrant. The Court treated the case as an exercise of its power of judicial review over actions and omissions of government agencies.
Dela Rosa filed the petition after reports circulated that the ICC allegedly issued an arrest warrant against him and former President Rodrigo Duterte.
He asked the Court to order the Department of Justice, the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Philippine National Police, and other agencies to disclose any information on the alleged ICC warrant and to furnish him an official copy if it existed.
The Supreme Court considered the arguments of Dela Rosa and the comments of the respondent agencies before it issued the denial. The resolution stated that the petitioner did not show a clear legal right that required the Court to grant the requested relief.
The justices ruled that the extraordinary remedy of mandamus required proof that a government agency unlawfully neglected a duty specifically enjoined in law. The Court found that Dela Rosa did not establish that the respondent agencies had a ministerial duty to disclose the alleged ICC warrant.
The ruling stated that the petitioner relied largely on unverified reports on the existence of the alleged ICC warrant. The Supreme Court emphasized in its resolution that it could not act on speculative or hypothetical claims and that the petition lacked sufficient factual basis for a writ of mandamus.
The Office of the Solicitor General, which represented the respondent government agencies, submitted a comment that opposed the petition.
The Solicitor General argued that the petition did not meet the requirements for mandamus and that no law required the agencies to release an alleged ICC warrant. The Court resolved the petition without oral arguments and decided the case on the pleadings. The clerk of court received and recorded the resolution in the Court’s docket, and the parties received official copies of the ruling through their respective counsel.
