Bato’s request to use Senate’s Baguio Mansion denied
Citing “ongoing repairs,” the Senate leadership denied a request from Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa—which he made despite being absent in the chamber’s session for the past four months—to allow his family to use the Senate Mansion in Baguio City.
In a letter addressed to Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III dated March 12, Dela Rosa sought permission to “allow us to use the Senate Mansion on March 26-29, 2026.”
“The Mansion will be used solely to accommodate the undersigned’s family during the CSAFP (Chief of Staff Armed Forces of the Philippines) Cup 2026 in Baguio City,” the letter added.
Senate secretary’s reply
The senator—who is also a former chief of the Philippine National Police—did not indicate if he himself would attend the event.
Dela Rosa has been absent from the Senate since November, when reports emerged that the International Criminal Court (ICC) had issued a warrant for his arrest. Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla was the source of the report, which the ICC had not confirmed.
Last month, unredacted ICC documents revealed him and six other past officials to be accused “co-perpetrators” in the case faced by former President Rodrigo Duterte at The Hague-based tribunal over his deadly war on drugs.
Dela Rosa’s letter to Sotto was received on March 12 by the office of Senate Secretary Mark Llandro Mendoza.
In a message to the Inquirer on Thursday, he said “We will be sending our reply to Senator Dela Rosa [that] there are ongoing repairs at the Senate Mansion.”
“Yes, it is denied,” Mendoza said of Dela Rosa’s request.
Continued absence
Because of his continued absence, Dela Rosa has been stripped of almost all of his committee memberships, with his allies in the minority taking his place.
The civil society group Wag Kang KuCorrupt filed an ethics complaint against Dela Rosa late last month over his absence, calling for the suspension of his salary.
American period
Located in Barangay Lualhati, the Senate Mansion is one of the government properties in the country’ summer capital, reserved for the use of visiting officials.
It was part of a larger area that also hosts another, grander mansion reserved for the President, a structure dating back to the American colonial period and now also a local tourist attraction. —WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH
Source: legacy.senate.gov.ph
