Palace: Roque’s asylum bid, persecution claims lack basis

Former presidential spokesperson and congressman Harry Roque Jr. answers questions at the House of Representatives Quad Committee hearing on Aug. 23, 2024.

HREP

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang said on Tuesday, September 15, that the asylum request and political persecution claims of former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque lacked basis as he continues to face charges in the Philippines.

According to Palace Press Officer Claire Castro, during a press briefing, aside from qualified human trafficking complaints, Roque also faces accusations of land grabbing and tax evasion.

“Ang paniniwala ng PCO (Presidential Communications Office) ay wala pong batayan ang ginawang request ni Harry Roque na sinasabing political persecution lang ang ginagawa sa kanya. Maliwanag naman po ang mga kaso, hindi lang qualified human trafficking,” Castro said.

(The PCO believes that Harry Roque’s request claiming he’s experiencing political persecution has no basis. The cases are clear, and they involve not only qualified human trafficking.)

The Palace’s comment came after Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla said in a separate press briefing earlier Tuesday that Roque’s asylum request had been denied.

Remulla previously said Roque was applying for asylum in Austria, citing political persecution.

In the Philippines, Roque faces non-bailable qualified human trafficking charges filed by the Department of Justice over his alleged active participation in the operations of Lucky South 99, the illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub in Pampanga, which was raided in 2024.

An arrest warrant was issued by a Pampanga court against Roque and his co-accused in May 2025 for the qualified human trafficking case.

Meanwhile, in March this year, a group of farmers from Bataan filed land-grabbing complaints against Roque for allegedly transferring land titles, which were supposed to be distributed to 100 farmers, to a private corporation connected to a POGO firm.

The corporation's listed address supposedly pointed to Roque’s office.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) also filed a tax evasion case against Roque and his wife in April this year for allegedly failing to pay P3.35 million in taxes connected to transactions involving Biancham Holdings and Trading Inc.

Roque denied all accusations, saying these are all part of the continuous political attacks against him.

He also dismissed Remulla’s claim that his asylum request had been denied, calling it “fake news.”

Roque, who served as the Palace spokesperson under then-President Rodrigo Duterte, left the Philippines in 2024.