Roque to De Lima: No credence, polluted sources, pathetic views

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque on Sunday gave a very heated reply to Detained Senator Leila De Lima for her comments against Roque’s speech in front of members states of the International Criminal Court, urging them not to meddle in the domestic issues of Philippines particularly, the controversial war on drug policy of President Rodrigo Duterte.

De Lima recently commented on administration’s statement to the ICC as an indication of the guilt of the President and his administration, claiming that the administration has policy that kills Filipinos.

The detained senator said: "Presidential spokesperson and self-styled human rights lawyer Harry Roque must be feeling very stupid. While he was proclaiming before the assembly of ICC state parties in New York that the ICC has no jurisdiction to investigate Duterte 'unless it can be shown that the state party is unwilling or unable to investigate and prosecute' the extra-judicial killings in the Philippines, his boss has just admitted that, indeed, his administration has a policy of killing Filipinos suspected of drug use and peddling."

"Nahubaran na sa entablado ng mundo ang iyong pagpapanggap na isa kang tagapagtanggol ng karapatang pantao. Alam na ng lahat na ikaw na ngayon ang tagapagtanggol ng pangunahing mamamatay-tao sa buong mundo," the senator said.

Roque, when asked about De Lima’s comments, he replied with an equally heated statement by calling De Lima as an unreliable source, and in consequence, someone whom no one should trust.

Roque said: “We should no longer give credence to anything that comes from Senator Leila de Lima as this is from a polluted source, who was accused of drug trafficking by at least 13 witnesses. We consider her views as rather pathetic attempts to remain relevant and in the headlines, hence, these should not be taken seriously."

He further added: "Moreover, Senator De Lima’s opinion reflects her utter lack of understanding of the principle of complementarity in International Law. This is no longer surprising since her professional practice was limited to election laws."

Roque then said that De Lima should focus on her case rather than criticizing the government.

***

Source: GMA News Online