Social media is buzzing following the discovery of documents linking former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque to his travel companion, Alberto Rodulfo De La Serna, who later became his executive assistant. The papers were found during a raid by the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) at the Lucky South 99 compound in Porac, Pampanga.
The PAOCC raid targeted the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub, where authorities previously uncovered illegal drugs and torture instruments. Among the seized documents were papers bearing Roque’s signature, which the commission stated “has no criminal value” to the ongoing investigations against POGOs.
One document appointed De La Serna as Executive Assistant III with a Salary Grade 20 in the Office of the Presidential Spokesperson, effective from January 4, 2021, to December 31, 2021. Another document was an affidavit of support for De La Serna’s travel to Poland, Ukraine, and Italy in October 2023, indicating he would accompany Roque as an invited resource person for an event on the Peace Process in Ukraine.
Roque’s letter explained, “I need a travel companion since I am diabetic, with coronary stent and suffering from acute spinal stenosis.” He affirmed his financial capability to cover all related expenses and assured that De La Serna would not burden the social services of the visited countries.
Roque clarified that the documents belonged to his former long-time staff, now studying in Clark, near the POGO hub. PAOCC spokesperson Winston John Casio noted that Roque served as a lawyer for Whirlwind Corporation, which leased property to Lucky South 99, emphasizing that this does not indicate suspicious activity.
Despite the PAOCC’s clarification, online discussions questioned De La Serna’s qualifications as a travel companion, noting his past as a male pageant candidate. “Is the travel companion in the medical field, aside from being a pageant winner?” one user asked.
