Roque files counter-affidavit in Abu Dhabi, says he's still abroad

 The Department of Justice (DOJ) disclosed on Wednesday, December 3, that former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque had his counter-affidavit for a qualified trafficking case notarized in Abu Dhabi.

“According to the panel, a counter-affidavit was submitted by the lawyers of Harry Roque. It would appear that he had a document which was notarized pero dun siya sa (but he was in) Abu Dhabi,” Prosecutor General Richard Fadullon told the media.

Roque confirmed this during a Wednesday press conference but said he is no longer in Abu Dhabi, leaving his current whereabouts still unknown.

“I have filed my counter-affidavit, and I swore this before the Philippine Consulate in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates,” he said in Filipino. “I came to the UAE just for the purpose of notarizing.” 

However, when asked if he is currently in the Philippines, he replied, "I am still outside the country."

Not filed in PH jurisdiction

Despite the counter-affidavit, Fadullon said the panel may or may not accept the document submitted through Roque’s lawyers, as the sworn statement was made outside the panel’s jurisdiction in the Philippines.  

“The only way that we can consider that is if he executes the affidavit and has it notarized or apostilled before the embassy of the country where he is at that particular time,” he added.

Fadullon also said that Roque’s counter-affidavit is not “apostilled,” meaning it lacks the official government certification that verifies its authenticity and origin.

“Unfortunately, we have no way of verifying whether these documents are documents that we can consider for purposes of resolving the case dahil sa ito ay hindi apostille (because it is not apostilled),” he said.

The prosecutor general explained that for any document to be considered within Philippine jurisdiction, in case one is abroad, the “very least” they can do is have it apostilled. 

Fadullon added that Roque is required to appear before the prosecutor, who is mandated by law to “ensure that the person who executed the counter-affidavit is indeed the one who signed it.” This can even be done via online platforms like Zoom, he said.

Roque says, ‘No’

However, Roque said he won’t appear before the prosecutor. 

If the DOJ wishes to verify his appearance during the signing of his counter-affidavit, he said the agency could contact Vice Consul Kevin Mark Gomez, who notarized it, as well as Philippine Ambassador to the UAE Alfonso Ferdinand Ver.

He mentioned that Ver was “personally present” when he swore to his counter-affidavit.

“There is nothing in the rules that requires me to appear, as the rules specify that I should take an oath before a government personnel with the power to administer the oath,” Roque said in Filipino.  

“Ask the public officers, as the Vice Consul and the Ambassador of the Philippines to the UAE would not lie,” he added.

In his counter-affidavit, the former presidential spokesperson argued that there was no evidence of his involvement in human trafficking and requested the dismissal of the complaint against him. 

Roque failed to attend the DOJ’s preliminary hearing on November 18. 

How Roque got into this mess

The former presidential spokesperson is facing qualified trafficking charges for his alleged involvement in the operation of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), specifically the now-defunct Lucky South 99.

During the House Quad Committee’s probe into POGOs, lawmakers discovered that Roque was the legal counsel for Whirlwind Corp., a real estate firm that leased land to Lucky South 99.

He allegedly assisted Whirlwind incorporator Cassandra Ong with the renewal of Lucky South 99's registration.

Authorities have described the Porac-based, Chinese-linked POGO as a “front” for criminal activities, including scams, trafficking, prostitution and illegal drugs.

This followed the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group's filing of a supplemental complaint related to the charges against Ong and 53 others, including kidnapping and torture.

Other than his alleged participation in illegal POGOs, Roque and his wife Mylah are also under fire over the rapid increase of their firm's assets. Binacham Holdings and Trading's assets grew from P125,000 to P67.7 million in just four years, from 2014 to 2018. — jose atanacio jmnebs news

South Korean president abandons martial law attempt

 SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol abandoned a short-lived attempt at martial law on Wednesday after lawmakers defied security forces to vote against his declaration and thousands of protesters took to the streets.

Yoon's shock bid to impose South Korea's first martial law in over four decades plunged the country into its deepest turmoil in its modern democratic history and caught its close allies around the world off guard.

The United States, which stations nearly 30,000 troops in South Korea to protect it from the nuclear-armed North, initially voiced deep concern at the declaration, then relief that martial law was over.

The dramatic developments also left the future of Yoon -- a conservative politician and former star public prosecutor who was elected president in 2022 -- in jeopardy.

South Korea's main opposition party -- whose lawmakers jumped fences and tussled with security forces so they could vote to overturn the law -- demanded Yoon to step down immediately over the attempted "insurrection".

The nation's largest umbrella labour union also called an "indefinite general strike" until Yoon resigned.

And the leader of Yoon's own ruling party even described the attempt as "tragic" while calling for those involved to be held accountable.

Yoon backed down after lawmakers voted to oppose the declaration, which he made late on Tuesday night citing the threat of North Korea and "anti-state forces".

"Just a moment ago, there was a demand from the National Assembly to lift the state of emergency, and we have withdrawn the military that was deployed for martial law operations," Yoon said in a televised address around 4:30 am (1930 GMT Tuesday).

"We will accept the National Assembly's request and lift the martial law through the Cabinet meeting."

Yonhap news agency then reported that Yoon's cabinet had approved the motion to lift the order.

 

- 'Impeachment' -

 

The U-turn prompted jubilation among protesters outside parliament who had braved freezing temperatures to keep vigil through the night in defiance of Yoon's martial law order.

Demonstrators who had been waving South Korean flags and chanting "Arrest Yoon Suk Yeol" outside the National Assembly erupted in cheers.

Lim Myeong-pan, 55, told AFP that Yoon's decision to rescind martial law did not absolve him of wrongdoing.

"Yoon's act of imposing it in the first place without legitimate cause is a serious crime in itself,” Lim told AFP.

"He has paved his own path to impeachment with this."

Defying security forces, 190 lawmakers managed to get in to the assembly in the early hours of Wednesday and unanimously voted to oppose martial law.

Under the constitution, martial law must be lifted when a majority in parliament demands it.

 

- 'Anti-state' elements -

 

Yoon had given a range of reasons to justify martial law -- South Korea's first in more than 40 years.

"To safeguard a liberal South Korea from the threats posed by North Korea's communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements plundering people's freedom and happiness, I hereby declare emergency martial law," Yoon said in a televised address.

Yoon did not give details of the North's threats, but the South remains technically at war with nuclear-armed Pyongyang.

"Our National Assembly has become a haven for criminals, a den of legislative dictatorship that seeks to paralyse the judicial and administrative systems and overturn our liberal democratic order," Yoon said.

The president labelled the main opposition Democratic Party, which holds a majority in the 300-member parliament, "anti-state forces intent on overthrowing the regime".

Yoon and his People Power Party are also bitterly at odds with the opposition over next year's budget.

Opposition MPs last week approved a significantly downsized budget plan through a parliamentary committee.

The imposition of emergency martial law came after Yoon's approval rating dropped to 19 percent in the latest Gallup poll last week, with many expressing dissatisfaction over his handling of the economy and controversies involving his wife, Kim Keon Hee.

Concern, relief

Democratic South Korea is a major ally for the United States in Asia, but Washington said it was not given advance notice of Yoon's plan to impose martial law.

"We are relieved President Yoon has reversed course on his concerning declaration of martial law and respected the ROK National Assembly’s vote to end it," a National Security Council spokesperson said in a statement, using the acronym for South Korea's official name.

China, a key ally of North Korea, had urged its nationals in the South to stay calm and exercise caution, while Britain said it was "closely monitoring developments".

Vladimir Tikhonov, professor of Korea studies at the University of Oslo, said Yoon's move to impose martial law was "an attempt to wind the history back".

"I don't think South Korea's civil society can recognise Yoon as a legitimate president any longer," he told AFP.

President’s office hands off Sara Duterte impeachment

 Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said the Office of the President is not involved in the impeachment complaint filed against Vice President Sara Dutete before the House of Representatives.

Bersamin stressed that the earlier pronouncement of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. regarding impeaching Duterte is “unambiguous.”

“The impeachment complaint filed in the House of Representatives by several private citizens is clearly the complainants’ independent initiative, and its endorsement [is] the prerogative of any Member of the House of Representatives,” Bersamin said in a statement Tuesday.

“The Office of the President has nothing to do with it,” he added.

On Monday afternoon, private individuals filed the first impeachment complaint against Duterte, citing 24 violations allegedly committed by the vice president.

Akbayan Party-list Rep. Percival Cendaña endorsed the 50-page impeachment document crafted by religious leaders, sectoral representatives, and families of drug war victims.

Last Nov. 29, Marcos disclosed he had told Congress not to file Cimpeachment complaint against Duterte.

“Well, it was actually a private communication, but it got leaked. Yes. Because that’s really my opinion,” Marcos said in a mix of English and Filipino.

“This (impeachment) is not important. This does not make a difference to even one single Filipino life. So why waste time on it?” he asked.

my Opinion vp sara impch

WHY IMPCH CONGRSS POWER IMPCH SENTE OF COUT 

1 CONF 

2 dead threats fist famiy 

3 betrayal of public trust and other “high crimes SEN CHZ SAY REDY OF HOUSE proceed IMPCH 

Congress urged to pass ‘half-cup rice’ law

With at least P3.6 billion worth of rice wasted annually, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. is pushing for the revival of a proposed measure mandating restaurants, hotels, canteens and eateries to serve half-cup of rice.

At a press conference, Agriculture Assistant Secretary and spokesman Arnel de Mesa yesterday noted that President Marcos himself was a proponent of half-rice servings during his stint at the Senate.

“For the record, the secretary wants to revive a bill offering half-cup of rice. In the 16th Congress, President Marcos filed such a bill when he was a senator,” De Mesa said.

He added that Tiu Laurel is ready to assist lawmakers in crafting the proposed measure.

“The secretary is really interested in helping revive and craft a new bill that hopefully will cater to the possibility of offering (half-cup of rice) as an option. At present, it is better if it will become an option, but of course, we defer to the legislators what could be the best scenario for this bill,” De Mesa said.

He cited the study of the Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute which showed that in 2019, at least nine grams of rice was wasted by each Filipino.

“That’s practically equivalent to two tablespoons but the 2019 (statistics) was old data. It dropped to 6.4 grams. The rice wastage (may have) decreased, but still, that translates to about 255,000 metric tons (MT) of rice wastage every year,” he added.

The country’s daily requirement of rice is pegged at 37,000 MT, according to the DA official.

“It will be a big help if half-cup rice service will be implemented to lessen the rice wastage of Filipinos,” he said.

He maintained the half-cup of rice serving will only be an option to the customers.

“The same choice should be accorded to those who want to avail the half-rice, although it is not mandatory but optional. If you serve one cup of rice and there will be leftovers, that is automatic wastage, not unlike if there is an opportunity to offer a half-cup of rice,” he explained.

A total of P1.6 billion in savings could be incurred if the government cuts the annual rice wastage to half, according to De Mesa.

The Philippine Rice Research Institute in 2023 also pushed for a half-cup rice law to avoid rice wastage.

Rice smuggling

A farmers’ group yesterday said that rice smuggling and hoarding have increased as the organization pushed for the review of Executive Order 62, which lowered the tariff on imported staple food to 15 percent from the previous 35 percent.

AGAP party-list Rep. Nicanor Briones said EO 62 failed to reduce the retail price of rice in the markets. 

“EO 62 has a lot of loopholes, including its failure to control smuggling. It was implemented without consultations with farmers and fishermen,” he said.

The representative added that EO 62 allowed traders to import unlimited volumes of the staple, enabling unscrupulous businessmen to under-declare their imports and smuggle the rest of the product.

He added that the government has lost at least P12 billion in revenues because of EO 62 and the funding under the Rice Tariffication Law could have been used to provide assistance to the farmers and fisherfolk.

The EO has resulted in the country’s dependence on importation and prevented the farmers from being more competitive, according to Briones. 

“Retail prices of rice have yet to go down despite almost six months of its implementation,” he said.

He noted that based on monitoring in Metro Manila markets, the retail price of well-milled rice ranged between P48 and P55 per kilo, while regular-milled rice ranged between P45 and P52 per kilo.

“Rice should only be at P41 to P45 per kilo because of the lower tariff. It is clear that some traders are taking advantage of the executive order,” he said.

Briones called on the DA to name the top 10 rice importers in the country to check rice cartel, profiteering, hoarding and smuggling.

Impeach complaint filed vs VP Sara

House: It’s our constitutional duty to act on complaint

 Several civil society groups yesterday filed before the House of Representatives a consolidated impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte, primarily hinged on allegations of misuse of her office’s confidential funds.

Tindig Pilipinas, Magdalo and Mamamayang Liberal led by former senator Leila de Lima filed the first impeachment suit against Duterte before the office of House Secretary General Reginald Velasco, where they accused the Vice President of violating anti-graft laws.

The complainants include Fr. Flaviano Villanueva; Fr. Robert Reyes; former peace adviser Teresita Quintos Deles; Francis Aquino-Dee, human rights advocate and the late president Benigno Aquino III’s nephew; Randy delos Santos, uncle of Kian delos Santos and other drug war victims; Leah Navarro; Sylvia Estrada Claudio and former Magdalo party-list congressman Gary Alejano.

Last week, President Marcos had advised his House allies to refrain from impeaching Duterte, even if the Vice President vowed to have him killed if she herself were killed.

“Our complaint is a clarion call to dismantle the culture of violence, corruption and impunity that has marked the Vice President’s leadership,” Villanueva said.

De Lima, first nominee of Mamamayang Liberal and who serves as the advocacy group’s spokesperson, accompanied the complainants during the filing and emphasized the gravity of the charges.

“Public office is not a throne of privilege; it is a position of trust. Sara Duterte has desecrated that trust with her blatant abuses of power. This impeachment is not just a legal battle, but a moral crusade to restore dignity and decency to public service,” the former justice secretary stressed.

Deles made the same pitch.

“The VP has reduced public office to a platform for violent rhetoric, personal enrichment, elitist entitlement and a shield for impunity. Her actions desecrate our institutions and her continued grip on power insults every Filipino who stands for good governance and the rule of law,” she said.

The complaint was endorsed by Akbayan party-list Rep. Perci Cendaña, who called the move a critical step in the fight for truth and justice.

“The people deserve a VP who is ethical, accountable and committed to public service – not one who weaponizes authority for personal gain. The effort to hold Sara accountable is inseparable from the broader campaign to make her father and their allies answer for their high crimes,” Cendaña said.

There are 24 Articles of Impeachment covering alleged violations of the 1987 Constitution, starting from when Duterte was Davao City mayor in 2007 up to the time she was elected Vice President in 2022 and served as secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd) in a concurrent capacity.

They allege that Marcos’ former UniTeam running mate in the 2022 elections was “guilty” of “culpable violation” of the 1987 Constitution, as well as “guilty of graft and corruption, bribery, betrayal of public trust and other high crimes.”

The complainants included two of Duterte’s two statements: the first in October, when she mentioned that she wanted to cut off Marcos’ head, and the latest on Nov. 23, when she vowed to have the Chief Executive killed if she herself would be killed.

These were stated in the Articles of Impeachment 23 and 24, respectively.

No President Marcos intervention

Alejano expressed belief that Marcos will not intervene in the impeachment complaint that they filed against Duterte.

In an interview with “Storycon” on One News yesterday, Alejano said that while Marcos had already said that filing an impeachment complaint against Duterte would be a “waste of time,” the former Marine captain thought the President would not stop the impeachment complaint from proceeding further.

“The President has his own opinion. I think the President would not use force or abuse (his power over the super majority). He would allow the impeachment complaint to run its course at the House of Representatives,” Alejano pointed out.

He recalled that on the issue of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Marcos had said that he would not cooperate in the investigation on the extrajudicial killings allegedly committed during the term of former president Rodrigo Duterte, but the President has not stopped the process.

For Alejano, Marcos’ treatment of the impeachment complaint against Duterte would be the same as with the ICC issue.

“He would not stop it” if a complaint has been filed, according to Alejano.

He is also leaving it to the House leadership how congressmen would treat the impeachment complaint since it is Congress’ constitutional mandate to act on the complaint.

“The ball is now in the hands of the Speaker of the House,” Alejano said.

It’s House mandate

Allies of Speaker Martin Romualdez yesterday declared that it is part of their mandate or obligation to check on the impeachment complaint filed against Duterte, despite the advise from Marcos against acting on it.

“We respect the opinion of the President. His opinion bears so much weight. However, we cannot stop anybody here from filing or any citizen, for that matter, from taking interest in an impeachment complaint,” House Assistant Majority Leader and Taguig City 2nd District Rep. Pammy Zamora said.

“If someone does file, we cannot just sit on it. But of course, we have to hear what the President is saying, but we’ll also have to check the contents of the impeachment complaint,” Zamora added.

Lanao del Sur 1st District Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong and 1Rider party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez agreed with Zamora.

Adiong clarified that Marcos’ message was an appeal, and reflected his respect for the legislative branch.

“We value his guidance. That’s not a directive; it’s an appeal. And that speaks about the character of the President, respecting the independence of the legislative branch,” Adiong said.

Gutierrez, a lawyer, emphasized that impeachment is a constitutional process and cannot be ignored if a legitimate complaint arises.

“This is a constitutional mandate. The process of impeachment is under our Constitution. Should there be any complaint filed, we are duty-bound to hear it out, check the merits and give it due process,” he added.

The neophyte legislator also pointed out that the President’s plea was advisory in nature and did not interfere with Congress’ independence.

No more time?

Manila Rep. Joel Chua, chairman of the House committee on good government and public accountability investigating the P612.5-million alleged misuse of Duterte’s intelligence funds in the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and DepEd, however, has a more pragmatic view.

“Once the President gives an opinion, of course, it would be difficult to muster support for this. But just the same, for me, personally, I see this as a little bit challenging. This is because by February 2025, it will already be campaign period. So, how do we take up the impeachment?” Chua said.

Velasco, for his part, assured the public that the House would be fair.

“The House is constitutionally mandated to act on any impeachment complaint filed in accordance with the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Pursuant to the Constitution, ‘a verified complaint for impeachment may be filed by any member of the House or by any citizen upon a resolution of endorsement by any member thereof,’ ” he said in a statement.

“It is crucial to underscore that addressing an impeachment complaint is not a discretionary act for the House, but a constitutional obligation. The Constitution prescribes clear steps to ensure fairness and adherence to the rule of law,” he added.

More raps eyed vs VP

Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police (PNP) is considering filing additional charges against Duterte in connection with recent incidents involving police officers.

At a news briefing at Camp Crame, PNP public information office chief Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo said the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group is continuing its investigation into the events that happened on Nov. 23.

“We initially filed cases of direct assault, disobedience to persons in authority and grave coercion. However, we are also examining the possibility of filing administrative and civil cases,” Fajardo said.

Fajardo confirmed that Duterte holds a license to own and possess firearms and has registered firearms under her name.

Fajardo, however, declined to disclose the type of license or the number of firearms registered.

Addressing claims of threats against Duterte, Fajardo clarified that the PNP has not received any official documentation of these threats.

“There are reports that the Vice President has documented threats, but we have not been furnished with a copy,” Fajardo said.

“We presume that the Presidential Security Command, which has direct authority over the security of the President and the Vice President, has these documents. If the PSC requests our assistance in validating these threats, we will respond accordingly,” she added.

Presidency is fate

“It’s fate, stupid!”

This, in essence, was the reaction of one of the members of the “Young Guns” group of administration lawmakers when Duterte claimed she was actually a shoo-in for the presidency in the May 2022 elections.

“Then why didn’t she run if she had it in the bag? She should have run. I mean, it’s already 2025 and now she’s claiming the presidency was hers for the taking,” Taguig-Pateros 2nd District Rep. Pammy Zamora told House reporters at a briefing yesterday.

“As far as I’m concerned, she should have run. We all know in our history that winning the presidency is destiny. It’s really destiny,” she added.

Marcos leads Christmas tree lighting at Palace

 President Marcos and First Lady Liza Marcos led the Christmas tree lighting ceremony at Malacañang yesterday, with Vice President Sara Duterte a no-show amid the ongoing rift between the two highest officials of the land.

During his speech, Marcos said that Filipinos deserved to celebrate Christmas amid the successive typhoons in the country.

The President asked Filipinos to “hold a thought for all those people who up to now are trying to recover from the effects of the six typhoons that we suffered in 23 days.”

“My Christmas wish is that despite everything, every Filipino should somehow feel the Christmas (spirit)," he said.

Palace Deputy Social Secretary Dina Arroyo Tantoco said that everybody was invited, including Duterte, to attend the Malacañang Christmas tree lighting.

Marcos conferred awards to the top three winners of the National Parol-Making Competition dubbed “Isang Bituin, Isang Mithiin” by the Office of the President, Office of the Social Secretary and Department of Education.

Some senators also attended the Christmas tree lighting, including Senators Grace Poe, Koko Pimentel and Jinggoy Estrada.