Malacañang has advised the public to be critical of unverified reports claiming Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa has been arrested, suggesting that supporters of Vice President Sara Duterte are using the rumors to distract from her ongoing impeachment trial.
Communications Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro stated on Wednesday, August 5, that Filipinos should scrutinize the origins and intentions behind the circulating claims before accepting them as truth.
“Bago po ang ating mga kababayan maniwala sa mga usap-usapan, alamin natin yung source. Ano ang motibo ng mga nagpapakalat?” she said.
Castro encouraged the public to differentiate between baseless social media posts and properly fact-checked journalism.
“Dito po natin hahanggaan ang nasa kilalang mainstream media na hindi biased dahil bago magbalita ay inaalam ang katotohanan,” she added.
She directly questioned the information being spread by former Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque and lawyer-musician Jimmy Bondoc, pointing out the lack of supporting details in their claims regarding the senator.
“Mapapansin na walang laman at walang konteksto ang pinapakalat nina Atty. Bondoc at Roque about Sen. Bato,” Castro noted.
According to Castro, the sudden emergence of these rumors aligns suspiciously with the Senate’s scrutiny of the Vice President.
“‘Timing’ ang ginagawa nila… para matabunan ang mga naisiwalat ng COA patungkol sa mga walang resibo na paggasta ng milyong-milyong pisong confidential funds ni VP SARA sa OVP at DepEd,” Castro stated.
Duterte’s impeachment case under Article I centers on the alleged misuse of ₱612.5 million in confidential funds—allocated as ₱500 million to the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and ₱112.5 million to the Department of Education (DepEd). The case highlights a Commission on Audit (COA) disallowance of ₱73 million from the OVP’s ₱125-million December 2022 budget due to missing supporting documents.
Duterte has denied the accusations, maintaining that her office has submitted the required paperwork and that their appeal is still pending before COA.
Reiterating that the Dela Rosa rumors are a likely diversionary tactic, Castro urged citizens to rely on credible institutions.
“Maging mapanuri… mainstream media pa rin ang unang dapat na pagtiwalaan sa mga beripikadong balita,” she said.
Dela Rosa remains the subject of an active International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant, unsealed in May, over alleged crimes against humanity tied to former President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drug campaign.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has instructed the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police to enforce the warrant, but the senator’s whereabouts have been unknown since he left Senate protective custody in May.