THE Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) has denied harboring Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, saying the claim it was providing refuge to the fugitive lawmaker was “speculation, not a confirmed fact.”
The MNLF’s denial came as the Philippine National Police (PNP) intensified its manhunt for dela Rosa following the lapse of a one-week deadline for his surrender and the government’s offer of a P50-million reward for information leading to his arrest.
In a statement dated Oct. 30, the MNLF said it has no formal relationship with dela Rosa.
“The claim that the MNLF may be protecting him is speculation, not a confirmed fact,” the group said.
The group acknowledged that dela Rosa had personal and political connections to figures associated with the organization, particularly through former president Rodrigo Duterte’s relationship with MNLF founder Nur Misuari.
But it stressed that such connections did not establish that the senator was an MNLF member, an operational ally or someone currently under its protection.
The group also pointed to divisions within the MNLF, saying it remained uncertain whether Misuari’s faction would be willing or able to prevent dela Rosa’s arrest.
The senator has been out of public view since leaving the Senate on May 14, when authorities tried to serve him an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) over alleged crimes against humanity linked to the Duterte administration’s war on drugs.
Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla said on Oct. 20 dela Rosa was in Mindanao under the protection of a powerful armed group.
Remulla warned that a forcible arrest could trigger a bloody confrontation and that as many as 10,000 people could die.
Remulla did not identify the group or disclose the specific location where dela Rosa was allegedly hiding.
He said he preferred to negotiate the senator’s arrest to prevent a potentially deadly confrontation.
LtGen. Wilson Lopez, PNP deputy chief for administration and head of the task force leading the manhunt for dela Rosa, said Remulla’s claim was being validated.
Remulla announced the P50-million reward for information on dela Rosa’s arrest, declaring him “armed and dangerous.”
He said the reward was intended to boost efforts to locate the senator.
The PNP has organized task groups in all 18 police regions and deployed tracker teams to go after dela Rosa.
The National Bureau of Investigation said it was coordinating with the PNP and the Department of the Interior and Local Government in efforts to track down the senator.
The MNLF said dela Rosa’s public references to the organization had largely concerned the conflict in Marawi and peace-building initiatives.
As a student in Marawi, dela Rosa had experienced fighting between government forces and the MNLF, it said.
He had also supported programs benefiting former combatants and their children.
The MNLF cited his advocacy for the faster integration of qualified MNLF and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) members into the police and the military.
It said these activities reflected policy-level engagement rather than evidence of personal or organizational ties.
The MNLF acknowledged reports that Misuari and dela Rosa knew each other personally, but they did not prove that the organization was harboring the senator.
