Former Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque has pushed back against accusations made by Atty. Nicholas Kaufman, the lead counsel of former President Rodrigo Duterte, over his involvement in the ongoing International Criminal Court (ICC) case.
In a Facebook post, Roque firmly denied claims that he had been interfering with the defense’s legal strategy, calling Kaufman’s remarks — specifically describing his actions as “crazy schemes” — misplaced and unfair.
“I cannot be blamed for devising remedies to bring former President Duterte home alive. No such idea can be characterized as a crazy scheme,” Roque stated, referring to a proposed legal approach he had previously discussed with Vice President Sara Duterte.
Roque added that he had already coordinated with VP Duterte regarding his proposed domestic legal remedies, and that he had deferred to her judgment to temporarily set those aside until there is progress in the interim release process.
He stressed that his actions were not disruptive, pointing out, “Ad hominem attacks and other forms of character assassination have no place in the legal profession and in any decent society, especially if these are directed against individuals who have not… interfered in the case.”
Roque then challenged Kaufman to stop the finger-pointing, urging him to focus instead on achieving what truly matters: “to bring the former President home alive to make the Filipinos the happiest persons on earth.”
Kaufman, in an interview, previously criticized Roque for allegedly injecting himself into the ICC proceedings and revealed that Roque had approached a Dutch lawyer about suing the Dutch government — a move the defense counsel found risky and counterproductive.
“In my opinion, this was a crazy scheme,” Kaufman said, expressing concern that such actions might jeopardize the cooperation needed from the Dutch government in Duterte’s potential release.
