20/05/2026
OSG Welcomes SC’s Denial of Sen. Dela Rosa’s TRO Plea
20 May 2026
The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) welcomes the Supreme Court’s denial of Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa’s plea for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and/or status quo ante order (SQAO) in G.R. No. 278747.
In its Press Briefer dated May 20, 2026, the Supreme Court announced that the denial was reached through a vote of 9-5-1. It said that its ruling pertained solely to the requests for interim relief, and that the substantive constitutional and legal issues raised by the parties remain pending before it.
The denial of Senator Dela Rosa’s application for injunctive relief, which includes TRO, SQAO and writ of preliminary injunction (WPI), indicates that the Court found no basis to stop the implementation of the ICC warrant.
A TRO, if issued by the Supreme Court, would have enjoined the implementation of the ICC warrant until further orders. A WPI would have had the same effect as a TRO, but it is usually issued after affording parties the opportunity to be heard. Meanwhile, had the ICC warrant been implemented, an SQAO would have ordered the respondents to undo its implementation to revert the parties to the last, actual, peaceable and uncontested state of things before the controversy.
To recall, in its Comment filed on May 16, 2026, the OSG opposed the issuance of any injunctive relief, pointing out that Senator Dela Rosa failed to establish the basic requisites required by the rules. It stressed that Senator Dela Rosa failed to demonstrate a clear and unmistakable right that required immediate protection, that he failed to show an actual or imminent violation of such right, and the CIDG subpoena he invoked had already been recalled, and that he failed to establish an urgent and irreparable injury that would justify the Court’s intervention.
The Court’s denial of the TRO affirms that there is no legal impediment to the enforcement of the ICC warrant.
In its Comment, the OSG further discussed the interplay of the guarantee of due process, the demand for accountability, balancing of competing interests, and proper availment of judicial and equitable remedies, i.e. that one who deliberately places himself beyond the reach of law enforcement by going into hiding should not be entitled to ask for equity. Moreover, it pointed out that our country has expressed commitment and solidarity with other nations in recognizing that “there are crimes so grave that our government cannot simply look away.”
The OSG likewise humbly exhorted the Court to look at the law, and more importantly the highest purpose of law which is to attain justice. It noted that Senator Dela Rosa’s case compels the nation to confront a far deeper question for the Filipino people: in the face of his prosecution for crimes against humanity, our response will demonstrate what commitment to justice and the rule of law truly mean for our nation.
The OSG awaits the release of the Court’s full ruling addressing the other preliminary issues. #
