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| Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on an interview with ANC |
Incoming Presidential
Spokesperson Harry Roque said in an interview on Thursday that there will be no
compromise in his character when he becomes President Rodrigo Duterte's
mouthpiece.
"Not at all. I
probably would not have accepted this post had the President [not] clarified
his position after Kian’s killing. But with the pronouncement of the President,
he is completely in compliance with our state obligations on human rights, to
protect and promote the right to life," Roque said in an interview with
ANC's Headstart
Duterte last week announced Roque's appointment, choosing the Kabayan
Party-list Representative to replace Ernesto Abella, whom he had known for
decades.
Critics have questioned
Roque's acceptance of the post as he would be joining an administration heavily
criticized for alleged human rights abuses in the drug war.
Yet, Roque said he does
not believe the President could have ordered the killings.
"The perception is
he’s behind the killings. I’m here to tell them as a lawyer, there’s no
evidence that he ordered the killing and there’s no evidence that we’re in
anyway in breach of our obligation to investigate and to prosecute," he
said.
"I take on a job
and I take on a job with a purpose. I want to put the communication of the
President in the proper legal context and I want to be instrumental in making
history in this country, not just a witness to history in this country,"
he added.
Roque said he will only
speak of the President's stance and not his.
"I will be (a)
spokesperson. I will have to mouth the President’s positions on these issues.
So I will say, the President supports the death penalty. Is that my personal
belief? No, and people know it because of my voting record in the House,"
he said.
"It’s not my
business to argue about the policies of the President. My business is to
restate the policy of the President and to provide the correct legal context in
case he is not understood," he said.
Roque said he accepted
the position as the spokesperson to take advantage of the opportunity to call
the police and inquire about the progress on the investigation and prosecution
of the perpetrators.
"Maybe that’s why God
said we should give you this opportunity because that’s the most active and
most effective manner in which I can contribute to solving one of our problems,
the problem of killings," he said.
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