Harry Roque can’t hide behind asylum request — Palace

Former Palace spokesperson Harry Roque talks to journalists outside the International Criminal Court ahead of the hearing of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte in The Hague on March 14, 2025. — Photo by Agence France-Presse

MANILA, Philippines — Former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque cannot hide behind his request for political asylum in the Netherlands to escape his arrest warrant in the country, said the Palace on Friday.

Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro made the pronouncement after Roque said he will continue to seek political asylum in the Netherlands after an arrest warrant was issued against him for his alleged involvement in a scam hub in Pampanga.

READ: Pampanga court issues arrest warrant vs Cassie Ong, Harry Roque, others

Castro pointed out that Roque must first prove that the warrant against him was “mere harassment” or he cannot simply insist that he cannot be arrested simply by applying for asylum.

“He is the one who filed the petition for asylum, so in order to avoid arrest — since a valid warrant of arrest has already been issued by our country — he must be the one to prove that the effort to take him into custody, whether through Interpol or with Interpol’s cooperation, is merely a form of harassment. So, there is a condition for that,” said Castro in a Palace press conference.

“That is not a statement saying you can’t be arrested just like that. If there is a valid warrant of arrest and he has a case to face, he should not hide behind her petition for asylum,” she added.

When asked what the Palace thinks about Roque describing the arrest warrant as mere “political persecution” due to his ties with the Dutertes, Castro reminded him that he is the one who has yet to present the documents he promised to the House of Representatives during a quad committee hearing.

Castro was referring to Roque’s failure to submit documents that would supposedly justify his sudden increased wealth to House members, which resulted in an arrest order being issued against him.

“So how can this be considered political persecution?” said Castro.

It was only on Thursday when an arrest warrant against Roque was made public for violation of Section 4(1), in relation to Section 6 (c) of Republic Act No. 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003.

The warrant was based on a qualified human trafficking case filed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) against Roque and several others for their alleged involvement in the operations of scam hub Lucky South 99 in Porac, Pampanga.

The DOJ noted Roque’s participation was not just limited to being a lawyer for Whirlwind Corporation—the company which leased land to Lucky South 99—but was also the representative of the Pogo. /das