Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Juanito Victor “Jonvic” Remulla said Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano initially objected to the arrest of Senator Jinggoy Estrada inside the Senate premises, but law enforcement proceeded to enforce the warrant, stressing that there is no longer immunity from arrest in such cases.
During a press briefing at the Philippine National Police (PNP) headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City, Remulla said Cayetano raised concerns over the separation of powers and historical Senate practices of courtesy toward members facing legal action.
“He was insisting that nobody could be arrested inside the Senate. He was requesting that he be brought out of the Senate first,” Remulla said.
However, the DILG chief said he firmly rejected the request, citing a previous incident involving Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.
“I’m sorry, sir, you lost that privilege when Bato escaped. We will arrest him now on the spot,” Remulla said, referring to the earlier case that changed how authorities handled Senate-related arrests.
Remulla clarified that while courtesy may still be extended to the legislative branch, it does not prevent the execution of a valid court order.
“We will inform them, we will give them the courtesy, but if there’s an arrest to be made, we will make the arrest,” he said.
He confirmed that Estrada was personally arrested by authorities together with the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), read his Miranda rights, and brought to the appropriate processing facility.
“We arrested him. I went there personally, together with the CIDG. He was read his Miranda rights and from there he was brought here to the primary process,” Remulla said.
Remulla also noted that other co-accused in the case either voluntarily surrendered or were processed through the Sandiganbayan.
When asked about the Senate’s position that arrests should respect jurisdictional rules, Remulla said compliance applies only when lawful conditions are met, but not when it would obstruct enforcement.
“There is no more hiding behind the curtains of the Senate,” he added, emphasizing that authorities acted under both legal precedent and operational necessity.
