Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque shrugged off the objection posted by 152 lawyers against his nomination to the International Law Commission (ILC) even as he insisted he cannot be held liable for alleged crimes against humanity arising from the government’s bloody war on drugs.
“There is no such thing as guilt by association,” Roque said.
“They are saying guilt by association because I am the spokesperson of the President. There is no such thing,” he added.
The 152 lawyers alleged that Roque is not worthy of the post for “enabling extrajudicial killings, attacks on the rule of law and due process and his unacceptable positions on human rights, justice, pandemic responses, and good governance.”
However, the Palace official said the alleged extrajudicial killings of suspected drug lords and users have yet to be proven.
“The International Criminal Court matter is just a preliminary investigation on the war on drugs, not on President Duterte. It is an allegation that would still have to go through the eye of a needle,” he said.
He said that the country has a right to due process and presumption of innocence which should be applied to the president as well.
He also downplayed the impact of the opposition registered by his fellow lawyers.
“Well, for the knowledge of our fellow Filipinos, we have over 78,000 lawyers in the Philippines. If 152 contradicted my nomination, its equivalent is just 0.001 percent,” he said.