By ELLEN T. TORDESILLAS
I’M so glad that lawyer Harry Roque has decided to go via the party list in his entry into politics. He is no longer joining Vice President Jejomar Binay’s United Nationalist Alliance ticket.
In his meeting with members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in Bacolod yesterday, Roque announced that he will be the first nominee of the party list Kalusugan, Pabahay, Kabuhayan or Kabayan which describes itself as “ a multi-sector party that represents Filipinos in various marginalized but highly important sectors in Philippine society” in the 2016 elections.
Roque said being with Kabayan “is more consistent with my human rights advocacy.”
I heaved a sigh of relief.
Harry is a good friend. He and his law firm, Roque and Butuyan law office, supported us in our fight against attempts by Gloria Arroyo and her husband Mike Arroyo to intimidate media by filing libel suits left and right.
Harry also was with us when took the Arroyo officials to court for arresting us after the Manila Peninsula siege involving Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV in November 2009.
It’s not only I whom Harry has helped. He took on, pro bono, the case of then Marine first Lieutenant (now Major) Artemio Raymundo,who was subjected to a court martial for having shared with fellow soldiers the CDs “Ang Mabuhay Para sa Masa,” a bio-pic of former President and now Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada.
Raymundo was acquitted. He has resumed his military career and is now assigned at the Marine Brigade in Palawan.
Harry has always wanted to try to be part of government. Although he was in the forefront in the fight against Gloria Arroyo’s fraudulent presidency and campaigned actively for Benigno Aquino III in 2010, he was not part of any favored group in the Aquino administration.
He thought that he could pursue his political plans through UNA’s senatorial ticket.
It was very hard to reconcile Harry Roque with Binay given the anomalies that have been exposed by the Senate Blue Ribbon subcommittee that started with the investigation of the allegedly overpriced Makati City Hall Parking Building2.
The entourage of Binay in his provincial sorties include characters like Ilocos Sur Governor Chavit Singson.
Harry said there were two recent incidents that made him decide not to be part of Binay’s 2016 ticket.
When Binay decided to go to the wake of Arturo Macapagal, brother of Gloria Arroyo, at the Heritage Park two weeks ago, where the former vice-president was also reported to be going, the usual entourage was also expected to accompany him.
Harry’s daughter expressed her disgust which he himself shared.
Then they were notified that Binay was going to Maguindanao and their host would be an Ampatuan.
That was IT for Harry, who is counsel for 15 of the 58 victims of the November 2009 massacre perpetrated by the family of the late Andal Ampatuan Sr.
The past two weeks, Roque has been going around solo and he said he feels good about the reactions of the people he has met.
***
If you can’t counter the truth, spread lies.
That’s this issue or non-issue about the consultants of Sen. Antonio Trillanes III.
Here’s Trillanes’ statement:
“I categorically deny that I am using Senate funds for my household and personal expenses.
“The names mentioned in a newspaper article published today are legitimate consultants. Some were employed as confidential agents in relation to the ongoing Senate investigation regarding Binay anomalies; while others are doing field research, staff work, and other auxiliary services assigned to them.
“This consultancy issue was already cleared by the Commission on Audit, and up to this day, it has not issued any notice of disallowance regarding the same. In fact, the Senate has already met with COA, and it was concluded that there is nothing illegal with the Senators’ consultancy services expenses.
“I believe that this trivial issue is basically just a hatchet job to tarnish my anti-corruption efforts. I have been imprisoned for more than 7 years fighting for this advocacy and I’m not about to stop now. Just the same, be assured that not a single centavo of the funds entrusted to my office was pocketed.”
One report noted that most of Trillanes’ consultants are members of the Magdalo, a group of military officers who rebelled against Gloria Arroyo in July 2003.
So? You expect Trillanes to hire for his Senate staff members of UNA?
The dirty-trick operator should be told that aside from being graduates of the Philippine Miltiary Academy, most of those officers were able to obtain their Master’s degree in Public Administration during their 7 years in detention.
