Malacañang downplayed former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque’s bid for political asylum in the Netherlands, saying the petition would not affect the human trafficking charges he faces.
“It won’t have any effect,” Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said in a press briefing.
“First, he’s just filing a petition, and it hasn’t been granted yet. Remember, before it can be approved, he has to prove a well-founded fear of political persecution,” she added.
Castro dismissed Roque’s claims of persecution, citing what she called “overwhelming evidence” against him.
She pointed to documents reportedly found by the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC), including bank records and a lease contract linked to Roque and his assistant, AR Dela Serna.
“How could there be political persecution when the evidence speaks for itself?” she added.
The PAOCC has accused Roque of involvement in human trafficking operations connected to Lucky South 99, a company under investigation. Roque has repeatedly denied the allegations.
Castro urged Roque to face the charges head-on. “He should stand trial here and prove his innocence to the public,” she said.
In a separate report, Bureau of Immigration chief Joel Viado said Roque most likely took the same route Alice Guo used during her escape from the country.
Viado said Roque was sighted in Tawi-Tawi on September 2 last year and confirmed that the former presidential spokesperson arrived in the United Arab Emirates on September 4, 2024.
The Makabayan bloc will urge the House of Representatives’ quad committee to counter Roque’s asylum bid, ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro said on Tuesday.
“I think there will be a quad committee hearing soon, and there, we may discuss this application for asylum, a possible advice for the country or recommendation not to grant Harry Roque the asylum,” she said.
According to Castro, the stand of the quad committee may be coursed through the Department of Foreign Affairs, as it may be a government-to-government discussion.
KARAPATAN, a human rights watchdog meanwhile urged the Dutch government to immediately reject Roque’s application for asylum.
It expressed dismay over Roque’s statement that would an asylum application, saying he just wanted to evade full accountability in the Philippines for his role in the proliferation of Philippine offshore gaming operationand the implementation of the Duterte administration’s supposed. repressive policies.
The group claimed Roque is not be eligible for asylum in the Netherlands and anywhere else outside the Philippines.
“We likewise call on the Canadian government to deny the stay of two individuals — former Philippine National Police officer Josue Limmong Ahuday and National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict agent Jeffrey Celiz — in their country,” it said.
Ahuday was among the implementers of Duterte’s drug war, while Celiz was a notorious redtagger who repeatedly endangered activists and dissenters, it added.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “Palace: Roque’s political asylum bid won’t affect cases.”