MANILA, Philippines — The Filipino activist based in the Netherlands said that former Malacañang spokesman Harry Roque has a “credibility problem”, because of his “inconsistent and self-serving claims” of his visa status.
Joel Vega, who filed a petition to deny Roque asylum in his adopted country last year, told The Manila Times in a Messenger chat on Tuesday that the former spokesman of former president Rodrigo Duterte was manipulating facts on his asylum request.
“We have all witnessed how he manipulated facts and information when he asked for asylum in the Netherlands last year. Without going into details since these facts have already been exposed before, Roque is capitalizing on the bureaucratic silence from European immigration authorities since asylum decisions are treated as private issues, with the status updates provided only to asylum seekers themselves,” he said.
Vega, who leads Panagutin Network-Netherlands, said Roque has a “history of manipulation and the distortion of facts in cases where it suits him”.
“On the other hand, it is incumbent on Philippine authorities to treat these issues not only as political but also as legal and criminal matters that go beyond political interests,” he said.
Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla told reporters on Tuesday that Roque’s asylum request in the Netherlands was denied. Roque, on the other hand, also denied that Austria had turned down his asylum request, calling it “fake news”, claiming that this was submitted for resolution, and continues to await the official decision of Austrian asylum authorities.
