DOJ Bares Plan To Seek for Cancellation of Passport of Harry Roque amid Pending Arrest Warrant
HARRY ROQUE – The former presidential spokesman reacted to the Department of Justice (DOJ) seeking for the cancellation of his passport.
A local court in the Philippines has issued arrest warrants against Roque and Cassandra Ong over their alleged involvement in the Philippine Offshore Gaming operations in the country. However, it is no secret to the public that the former presidential spokesman is currently in The Hague, Netherlands.
Harry Roque was hiding for around six (6) months since the House of Representatives cited him for contempt and ordered his arrest. He appeared to public once again when former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, his former boss, was brought to The Hague for the transfer of his custody to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Roque initially claimed that he will be one of the lawyers who will defend Duterte in his ICC trial. He also bared his plan to apply for asylum in The Netherlands so he won’t be forced to return to the Philippines. He vowed to bring Duterte home.
On his pronouncements, Malacañang previously claimed that Harry Roque must defend himself first before other people. Amid the call to bring Duterte home, the Palace urged the Filipino people to challenge the former presidential spox to return to the country and face the accusations against him.
Following the issuance of an arrest warrant, the Department of Justice previously admitted that the warrant cannot be directly served to Harry Roque who is now an asylum seeker in the Netherlands. According to the former presidential spox of Duterte, he cannot be deported to the Philippines while the application process is ongoing and it may take more than a year.
The DOJ clarified that it does not mean that the arrest warrant is on hold — the government of the country where he is now can be notified about it but the implementation lies on the foreign entities. Meanwhile, the DOJ said it will work on the cancellation of the Philippine passport of Harry Roque.
Recently, former presidential spox Harry Roque reacted to the move of the DOJ for the cancellation of his passport. Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, the ICC-accredited lawyer tagged the move as allegedly politically-motivated.
“Cancelling my passport, I reiterate, is part of the Marcos Jr. administration’s efforts to silence me as a vocal critic and ally of the Dutertes,” Roque said.
Based on the report, the former presidential spox further claimed that the move for the cancellation of his passport is allegedly “premature” because of the motion for reconsideration that he has filed a week ago. He requested the Justice department to dismiss the case.
“In my Motion for Reconsideration, I stated that not a single evidence was presented… Likewise, on conspiracy, I pointed out that not a single witness testified that I committed an overt act of conspiracy,” he said.
Harry Roque maintained that he cannot be extradited while the Dutch authorities are considering his application for asylum in The Netherlands. Previously, former Senator Leila de Lima called on Roque to return to the country and not just hide under his application for asylum abroad.