Roque won’t return to Philippines unless ordered by SC

MANILA, Philippines — Former presidential spokesman Harry Roque has no plan to return to the Philippines unless ordered by the Supreme Court, maintaining his right to travel as there is no hold-departure order (HDO) against him.

“I am waiting for the decision of the Supreme Court or I will wait for the current Congress to end,” Roque said in an interview yesterday over dzBB.

Roque has submitted a counter-affidavit – notarized in Abu Dhabi – on the qualified human trafficking complaint lodged against him in connection with his alleged ties to an illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub in Porac, Pampanga.

He was mum on the statement of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) that he did not follow the legal or regular process in leaving the country.

“It is difficult to comment as according to them (BI), they will file a case against me,” he said.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) yesterday confirmed that Roque and his wife personally appeared at the Philippine embassy in Abu Dhabi for notarial services.

The DFA said the embassy extended consular services to Roque and his wife, as required for documents executed abroad for use in the Philippines.

“They were able to present valid passports and appear to be staying in the UAE legally,” the DFA said.

Roque maintained that he has the right to travel abroad as there is no pending warrant of arrest against him.

“Leaving the country is not proof of any as they claimed that flight is evidence of guilt as the court only issues the arrest warrant,” he said.

He defended his decision to leave the Philippines, saying he only exercised his right.

“For 40 years, I’ve defended the rights of others. It is only right that I reiterate my right as a person,” Roque said.

According to Roque, he will only cooperate in the investigation of the House quad committee if the high tribunal directed him.

“First, I don’t expect fair hearing at the Congress since their investigation is in aid of legislation. If we want justice, we should go to the court,” he said.

“If the Supreme Court ordered that I need to submit the documents, I will comply with the order of the judiciary but based on my knowledge as a lawyer, I know I am right,” he added.

Roque said that he is willing to cooperate with the investigation of the Department of Justice (DOJ) if prosecutors ask for additional information after his counter-affidavit.

“If they have questions, I can answer them via Zoom,” he said.

Roque said prosecutors can verify the authenticity of his counter-affidavit by simply calling the consul or ambassador in Abu Dhabi who facilitated his sworn statement.

He said no less than the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed that he went to the Philippine embassy in Abu Dhabi to submit his counter-affidavit.

Roque said he was not part of the original case filed by the DOJ and was only included after Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said that he is not a fugitive if no case is filed against him.

“Secretary Remulla said that I am not a fugitive if I have no case in court, that is why the case against me was belatedly filed in the prosecutor’s office,” he said.

Senator eyes probe

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said he is looking at filing a resolution to investigate how easy it is for suspects to slip past immigration despite facing congressional scrutiny for their involvement in illegal POGOs.

He was referring to Roque, who was able to go to Abu Dhabi, where he had his counter-affidavit notarized in response to a human trafficking case against him.

This is not the first time a POGO personality was able to escape, Gatchalian said, citing dismissed Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo who fled to Malaysia before hiding in Indonesia, where she was arrested.

“This is really concerning, how high-profile personalities like Harry Roque – who should be easily tracked – were still able to slip past authorities. So it’s either there is a syndicate or corrupt officials, who allowed him to escape. Or it can be because of the weakness in the system,” Gatchalian said.

“I am still studying about filing a resolution. I’m looking at this very seriously,” he added.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, for her part, urged the BI to identify those who helped Roque escape to United Arab Emirates and avoid a congressional investigation into his involvement in illegal POGO.

“I expect the BI, along with our other law enforcers, to identify at the soonest possible time who helped Harry Roque escape undetected,” Hontiveros said. “Dubai is also a POGO hub, so POGO actors could have helped Roque escape.” – Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Mark Ernest Villeza, Emmanuel Tupas